Second favourite
by Flawed-Fallacy
Summary: Piper gets a new job as a babysitter and meets a very interesting family. What will Piper do when she finds herself falling into the arms of the irresistible yet irrevocably annoying Alex Vause. Rated T for language. Will soon be rated M for more.
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER ONE**

Alex huffed as she threw the sofa cushions about the room. "Where are my goddamn keys?" She yelled at Elizabeth "I'm going to be late for work!" Elizabeth just sat on the floor looking around Alex whenever she stood in front of the TV. The brunette slammed her hands onto the table in exasperation, making Elizabeth jump.

"Don't you ever do that again Alex" shouted Diane. Alex jumped at the sound of her mother shouting as she rarely did so. " Here are your keys Alex, and what ever you do, do not terrify, yell at, belittle or harass the new babysitter, for God's sake do not even look at the poor girl" Diane continued calming her tone as it was evident it had shocked Alex. "oh, and do not invite Nicky around whilst the baby sitter is here. We really need this one." Alex nodded and threw her head back in exasperation "Fine. Sorry Elizabeth, bye mom" and with that she left.

Piper looked down at her text message for the apartment address as Alex rushed past.

"Move! I'm late" the brunette yelled at the blonde who jumped out of the way just in time.

"Rude" Piper thought to herself as she reached the apartment door '21A'. She looked down at her text and back up at the door. She had arrived.

What felt like seconds to Diane after Alex left the new babysitter arrived.

"Hi im Piper, the babysitter, we spoke on the phone. Nice to meet you Diane" Diane just nodded as she shook Piper's hand.

"This is my little baby, Elizabeth, please look after her carefully, she's my favourite, although don't tell Alex." She joked. "Alex?" Piper questioned. "oh, Alex is my big baby, Alex is out and hopefully wont be back anytime soon, I'm off out to work, there's a little bit of food in the fridge so help yourself. Her bedtime is at 7 and i'll pay you when I get back from work." Diane was rushing, mentally cursing herself for not being out of the house on time. "Be good for Piper" she slurred at Elizabeth as she stepped around the blonde and out of the door.

Piper knelt down next to where Elizabeth was sitting. "Hey, I'm Piper, your new babysitter, I'm new to this house, why don't you give me a little tour and then we can make some dinner" Elizabeth looked away from the TV and towards Piper. "Okay, lets do that but this is an apartment, not a house, and we aren't allowed in Alex's room, she is mean about it."

Piper nodded and stood up, brushing off her knees. "You lead the way Elizabeth" she gestured away from the TV and towards the kitchen. Elizabeth put her hand on Piper's and used it to pull herself up, that was when Piper realised how tall the oung girl was. "Wow, aren't you tall for a 6 year old?" Elizabeth just sighed, "I get that a lot, mummy says I will be tall like Alex one day. Big tall." Piper laughed as Elizabeth started to walk away. "I'm sure you will."

Piper followed obediently as Elizabeth pushed the door to every room. "Here's the bathroom, mum's bedroom, that is Alex's room" she pointed towards a door that looked exactly like the rest of the doors. Piper made a mental note to remember which room was which. "And this is the shoe cupboard and then this is the best room of all, my room!" Elizabeth shouted running in, jumping over the array of scattered toys and diving onto the bed. "Wow, your bedroom is messy isn't it?" Piper laughed as she stepped carefully into the minefield of plastic. "Nice bedding though" Piper pointed out as she sat down on the Star Wars clad bed. "My brother Cal would love these."

Elizabeth hung her head slightly as she twiddled the sheets in between her fingers. "They used to be Alex's, mum says I cant have new sheets 'til I'm bigger because she doesn't have the money." Piper was beginning to get a better picture of their family already. "Why can't you go into Alex's room?" Piper questioned wanting to change the subject.

"Because Alex gets angry when I go in, and is mean to me, mummy says I'm better off playing in my own room and mummy says Alex's room smells funny."

"Typical teenage boy" Piper thought to herself. She was intrigued by the whole family.

"Shall we go and see what to have for dinner?" Piper stood and held her hand out for Elizabeth to take. As they were making their way out of Elizabeth's surprisingly big room, being careful not to step on any Lego pieces or Polly Pocket figurines, Elizabeth spoke "You're pretty, I bet Alex would like you, Alex likes pretty girls."

Piper smiled, "Oh, he would?" Elizabeth jumped up onto one of the barstools and Piper began rifling through the cupboards. "She" Elizabeth corrected.

"Pardon?" Piper questioned, not taking her eyes out of the cupboard. "She. You said he, Alex is a she, she's my big sister." Piper was fairly amused and somewhat confused by the way Elizabeth spoke about Alex. This family was getting more and more intriguing by the minute. "So Alex is a girl who likes Star Wars eh? Mac 'n' cheese?" Piper suggested looking at the time it was almost five, she had arrived at half past four. Elizabeth simply nodded pointing at the microwave. "Mom says Alex isn't allowed pretty girls in the house anymore, she is only allowed Nicky in the house, Nicky plays Monopoly with me sometimes" Piper laughed at the young girl, completely dismissing the reality of what she was saying.

"How old is Alex?" The blonde found herself intrigued by the mystery surrounding Alex as her mind fought to build a better mental picture of her. "She's 18, she's old!" Elizabeth giggled. "Hey, I'm 18 too, does that make me old?" Piper found herself liking this little girl more and more, she seemed somewhat sophisticated and understanding for her age, it was clear that she didn't really hang out with kids her own age. "I guess so" Elizabeth smiled and once again pointed towards the microwave as it was a short silence as Piper whisked the Mac 'n' Cheese and returned it to the microwave.

"How come Alex doesn't babysit you then?" Piper mentally cursed herself straight after asking as she knew that this was prying a little bit too far into their lives. "She works to help mummy pay the bills and the apartment and buy food." Piper stood moouth agape as she slid the white ceramic bowl full of cheesy pasta towards the young girl.

"You are only six, you shouldn't know about the money and bills." The older girl thought to herself. She was amazed at the strange family she had walked into. Piper came from a well off famil with a working mother and father who supportd eachother and their children, she wanted for nothing, other than a bond with her parents which it seemed that Elizabeth had. "What about your dad?" Piper blushed as the words slipped out of her mouth before she even had time to think.

"Mum says we don't talk about dad, mum says he's not a very nice person so I don't see him and we don't talk to him." Elizabeth shrugged her shoulders and went back to eating her pasta. "I'm sorry for being nosey!" the blonde gushed as she realised how deeply she found herself prying. The pair sat at the breakfast bar for over a hour talking about Elizabeth's family and her home life and school and her friends. Piper felt sorry for Elizabeth, her mother was constantly at work, her father nowhere to be seen, her sister working to help her mother support the family and their lack of money, something that was very foreign to the blonde.

At quarter past six Piper ushered the small brunette off of the breakfast bar and towards her bedroom after not one but two bowls of ice cream. "Go on" the blonde coaxed, "Go and put your pyjamas on and I will come in ten minutes to help you tidy your room, brush your hair and read you a story." The young girl smiled widely and skipped towards her room "Don't forget to brush your teeth" Piper hollered after her turning towards the dishes in the sink to wash them. "This family needs all the help they can get" She thought to herself as she placed the bowls on the draining board.


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

Alex rushed through the traffic on her cheap run-down motorbike a gift,or more like a payment, from her new boss. Working at the diner had it's advantages, and a handsy boss just so happened to be one of them so when he got more than a little flirty one day Alex threatened him with a sexual harassment lawsuit if he didn't leave her a nice lump sum in her next paycheck. Needless to say he couldn't pay so Alex made him a second offer, give me your bike or I will ruin your life. He went with the first option. The second was the late shifts, the diner was usually fairly empty with just a few people filtering in for a late night coffee, which meant Nicky could come and hang with her at work. Lucky for Alex her boss wasn't in today otherwise she probably would have been fired for being over an hour late even though the diner was all the way across town.

Back at the apartment Piper was picking up toys from the bedroom floor. "You have a lot of toys don't you?" Piper gestured towards the overflowing toy box.

"Yeah, but my favourite toy is in Alex's room, she only lets me play with it in there, she likes to make sure I don't break it because it is her favourite toy too." Elizabeth replied walking over to the bookcase.

Piper laughed. "So do you and our sister get along then?" the blonde enquired standing and approaching the bed as the young brunette dived in.

"Yeah, we play games all the time" Elizabeth passed Piper her book and wriggled her way under her covers.

"I love ." She stated as she began to read. "One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish."

-0-0-0-0-0-

At the diner work was slow for Alex, Nicky had just arrived and was leaning over the bar helping herself to soda.

"You best not do when my boss is in" Alex scolded as she stood behind Nicky.

"Shit Vause, warn a bitch next time eh?" Nicky visibly jumped making Alex laugh.

"For that you can dry some dishes" The tall brunette threw a red checkered towel in Nicky's direction, everything about the diner was cliche, right down to the barely there outfits that they wore, the only thing missing was a pair of roller skates. Alex's uniform consisted of a tight white crop top emblazened with the diner's name 'Neptune's' and bright red daisy dukes with whit sport socks and black Chuck Taylor's. Everything about the diner screamed typical American stereotype down to the milkshakes and cherry pie to the vinyl records that plastered the walls. The brunette regularly felt sickened by the whole situation from her uniform to her boss but she didn't have the heart to leave the job, she needed this, her mum needed this and most of all Elizabeth needed this. She wanted to give Elizabeth the money she never had growing up, she wanted to buy her new sheets for her bed and new shoes so she wouldn't face the bullying Alex had at school.

God knows Alex hated the bullying but fuck if it wasn't a character builder, she was stronger now than ever, even if strength came with a steel cage around her heart and ten foot brick walls surrounding the rest of her. She wanted different for Elizabeth even though what she had in her childhood was just fine, Alex wanted more than just fine for Elizabeth, she wanted perfect.

"Eh, Vause, what you thinking about? You've been staring at that wall for nearly ten minutes now, you waiting for someone?"

The tall brunette just shrugged and tightened her ponytail "No, just keep drying, kid."

"Done." The crazy-haired girl threw her towel back at Alex which was now considerably damp.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper smiled as she closed the book rubbing her thumb across the young girl's forehead before walking over to place the book on the bookshelf. "Night" Piper whispered before turning off the light and retiring to the living room. "God knows how that kid falls asleep with the light on" Piper thought to herself. It was obvious that this was a family poor in money but rich in love and obviously a lamp or a six year old was not at the top of their 'to buy' list.

She slumped onto the sofa and looked at the clock before turning on the TV, 7:15, not bad timing at all considering it took her nearly an hour to get Cal to sleep at home when her parents weren't home, which was almost every night. Piper was thankful that Danny was now old enough to take care of him so she could earn some money.

Thinking of money the blonde decided that this family needed it more than Piper did. There was no way this family could afford to pay Piper what she was asking for, plus she enjoyed it. "I'll give them the first time free" she thought to herself, "from here on in, I will charge less."

After an hour of mindlessly flicking channels Piper found herself drifting in and out of sleep only to be awoken by Diane bursting through the doors at eleven with one brown paper bag in each arm.

"I finally made it home, I'm sorry Piper, I got caught up at work, I'll pay you the extra hour I promise" Diane seemed flustered as she began emptying the brown bags into the cupboards and fridge, banging the tins loudly as she stacked them.

The blonde jumped up from her seat on the couch and rubbed her eyes as she attempted to fix her gaze upon the clock. "Oh no, don't worry about it." Piper yawned. "Tonight was on me, consider it a probation period" she said sleep evident in her voice as she walked over to the kitchen taking a seat on the same bar stool type chair that Elizabeth had sat on earlier that night. "Oh and in future, I will only be charging five dollars an hour instead of the original ten I was asking for." Diane shook her head.

"Don't be silly girl, you've got to eat." Diane rifled through her purse still evidently flustered and panting slightly from what Piper can only assume is the six flight stair climb to the apartment.

Piper placed her hand upon Diane's as it fumbled through the purse. "I don't need the money Ms. Vause this job is just something to get me out of the house, it's just an escape. Your daughter is a credit to you and she speaks very highly of you, not so highly about Alex though I'm afraid, although she definitely does love her too." The blonde let out a sleepy laugh as Diane lowered her purse to the counter top and stopped fumbling.

"Thanks Piper but please call me Diane, I'll ring or text you next time I need you, what with shift changes and all."

Piper smiled "I'm flexible so just give me at least an hours notice and I will be here don't you worry" Taking that as her cue to leave she headed for the door.

"Oh and Piper, Thank you so much for tonight, you are a credit to your parents too ya know"

The blonde turned around and flashed Diane a half-hearted grin "Remember to tell my parents that if you ever have the misfortune of meeting them" she quipped before turning on her heels and heading through the door.

Diane furrowed her brow at that comment and looked at the clock, twenty past eleven. Alex would be home in less than an hour. As she screwed up the brown paper bags and dropped them into the bin she smiled to herself "What a kind young girl Piper is" she thought and with that she headed to Elizabeth's room. Upon opening the room Diane was expecting to be greeted with the familiar plastic minefield but was extremely shocked to find a spotless floor. Never before had Diane been able to walk from the doorway to Elizabeth's bedside to give her kiss without stepping on or breaking at least two toys. "Piper Chapman is a miracle worker" She thought to herself as she placed a kiss on Elizabeth's forehead.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex ushered Nicky out of the diner as she flipped the light switch and pulled the door closed. Locking up was one of Alex's job descriptions and yet she hated it, it meant that she was always the last one out and when she wanted to rush home and apologise to her mum for being so stroppy earlier on in the night it was a hinderance.

"Bye, kid" Alex waved Nicky off as she began walking down the street. The diner was in a much nicer part of town than Alex lived in and lucky for Nicky she only lived round the corner.

The dark-haired girl took out her bobble, let her hair feel the breeze for a moment and then stuck her helmet on. There was nothing better than riding through the city in the darkness on her bike, just her and the open road for a few miles. She smiled under her helmet as she kick-started the engine to life and wheelspun it out of the car park. Nicky rolled her eyes as she heard the familiar squeal of the bikes tyres. "Show off" she thought to herself as she disappeared around the corner.

Alex adored everything that came with owning a bike. The recognition from other bikers was incredible even if her bike was shitty and run down. Her favourite thing by far was her leathers, she threw them on over her uniform and was always pleasantly greeted by the smell of leather and the promise of cold knees. That was the only problem, she needed knew ones, the leather all-in-one she currently owned was secondhand and wearing thin at the knees, presumably from some previous accident the other owner had.

As she stepped through the doors of the apartment slightly out of breath, the raven-haired girl was pleased to be greeted by her mother who gestured towards the sofa and then towards a cold beer on the coffee table, Alex immediately knew her mum was in a good mood. She approached the sofa slowly taking her leathers off as she walked, eventually throwing them off and over the back of the sofa. "Listen mum, about earlier..." She began as she slumped down onto the sofa just as Piper had done hours ago.

"Forgive and forget, kid" Diane smiled and Alex was pleased to see that it was one of her favourite smiles, one that touched her eyes. "Guess who got a pay rise today." The raven-haired beauty thought her mum's smile couldn't get any bigger but it did. Simultaneously, the pair reached for their beers off of the coffee table and stretched them slightly above their heads before clinking the rims together "Cheers" they both began before they were interrupted by Alex's beer frothing over. The pair giggled like schoolgirls and Alex licked the bottle relishing in the relief that the cool condensation gave. "So let me tell you about the new babysitter..." Diane began, starting the conversation that would span most of the night.

A/N: sorry for any spelling mistakes, I don't have a spell checker and the keys on my laptop don't always work as well as they should. I wanted to get this chapter up as soon as I could, Piper and Alex will meet in the next chapter I promise. Thank you for the reviews. Keep them coming.


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER THREE**

Piper arrived home late, creeping through the house as quietly as she could. She got through the hallway and into the kitchen before her dad stepped through the front door creeping through in just the same manner as Piper had.

The blonde looked her dad up and down, he was still wearing his work suit and had lipstick smeared across his neck, his tie loosened in that telltale way. "Secrets are best kept, Piper" He hushed before darting upstairs.

Piper dropped her bag and keys on the island in the middle of the kitchen, rolled her eyes and checked the clock. 12:15. The young blonde grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and she too headed upstairs stopping to check in on Cal. She smiled as she saw him all tucked up in bed with his Star Wars sheets and for a fleeting moment she thought about Elizabeth tucked up in hers. Piper sighed as she closed the door and turned to head to her own room. Yesterday had been a long day and today was beginning just the same even though it was only 15 minutes in. She threw on last night's pajamas and crawled into bed checking her phone as she wriggled herself into her covers.

1 NEW TEXT MESSAGE

DIANE VAUSE:

 _Thanks for tonight Piper, I will definitely not need you tomorrow so have yourself a lovely day, from Diane :) xx_

The blonde smiled to herself. The Vause family was rich in love and quite clearly had some to spare unlike her own family. As she looked at the text a second time she noticed the small smiley face, Diane hadn't put smiley faces on any of her previous texts and she usually put three kisses not two. Piper had a feeling that this text was sent by the most mysterious member of the Vause family. Alex.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex gulped down her first mouthful of beer and smiled as she looked at the label. "Tell me all about this babysitter then." The raven-haired girl said as she skimmed the ingredients list with her eyes trying not to look too interested, she was always curious as to who her mother had hired and especially this time as Diane had been careful to conceal the girl from Alex.

"She is the sweetest young girl I have ever had the privilege of meeting." Diane began, Alex furrowed her brow at her mother and she concealed a smile behind the glass beer bottle. "Apart from you of course, darlin'." She gushed, noticing Alex's scowl. "Here's my phone, send her a thank you text telling her I won't need her tomorrow" she tossed the old battered phone across the sofa at Alex. "She gave us the first night free." Alex truly scowled this time, she felt mildly offended by the young girl now but she sent the text nevertheless.

"Did you tell her we don't need her charity?" Alex raised her voice to almost a shout.

"No, Alex, take your walls down. It wasn't like that; she called it an erm... I don't know a fancy version of a trial period."

"A _probation_ period mom?" Alex asked a hint of sarcasm and condescension in her voice.

"Remind me why you aren't going to college again?" Diane questioned knowing full well her question was rhetorical.

"Money mom, specifically the lack of." Alex retorted somewhat disheartened at both the act that she couldn't go to college and the fact that she had just drained the last drop of beer in her bottle. She stood and headed to the kitchen to put the empty bottle in the bin looking through the opening of the bottle as she went.

Diane was somewhat disheartened by Alex's comment, she knew that this was no life for Alex, dragging herself across town almost every day to a job she didn't enjoy just to help keep a roof over her own head. Alex deserved better and Diane was remorseful that she couldn't give her better. All Diane could do was apologize. "I'm sorry Alex"

The second oldest Vause girl could sense the sadness in her mom's voice and quickly decided to change the subject.

"So, what does this Piper girl look like then?" she questioned leaning over the breakfast bar propping herself up on her elbows, hands sat under her chin.

"Does that really make a difference?" Diane retorted leaning one arm over the back of the sofa.

"So she was ugly then?" Alex quipped, grinning wildly, her smile almost reaching her eyes.

"You are so shallow sometimes Alex, looks aren't everything you know." Diane scolded; she couldn't help but smirk a little seeing Alex's face light up.

"So she _was_ ugly then?"

"No, actually, she was a pretty young thing, blonde hair, blue eyes, not really your type though; she didn't seem at all obsessive or psychotic."

Alex let out a small purposefully sarcastic laugh at her mother's last comment.

"Obsessive and psychotic aren't my type's mom; it's just an element of surprise that comes along with my 'type' of women." Using air quotes to surround type was Alex's way of avoiding the fact that she really wasn't fussy with her women.

"She had an air of bitch about her too but once you speak to her it goes away, dissipates, as you would say."

Alex's smile reached her eyes this time. She loved the strange conversations her and her mom exchanged in the early hours of the morning.

"I'm going to bed now mom" Alex spoke in between yawns.

Diane smiled to herself; she truly was a very lucky woman to have such a wonderful daughter like Alex.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper outstretched her arms and yawned, rolling over onto her side where she then retrieved her phone from the bedside table. It took a while for her eyes to focus as she squinted at the numbers on her phone 12:09. She had to meet Polly at one; they were supposed to go birthday shopping for Pete, Polly's boyfriend.

Dragging herself out of bed she noticed the house was empty. Family day out for the Chapmans clearly. "Dad's probably trying to cover up his guilt from last night" Piper thought to herself as she leant her hands upon the bathroom sink leaning in towards the mirror.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex smacked her alarm several times before it silenced. 1 o'clock. She sighed before dragging herself out of bed. She had yet another late shift today 5 'til 12. She had promised to take Elizabeth to the local park whilst her mom went to do a proper food shop, something she was already regretting as she threw on an old oversized hoody and a pair of washed out blue baggy jeans with holes in the knees and slicked her hair back into a ponytail. It was threatening to rain outside and she really didn't fancy spending an hour in the pouring rain.

She complied anyway and rain it did. Alex had clearly woken upon on the wrong side of the bed and was not best pleased as she returned home, Elizabeth trailing close behind, soaking wet. As she got home she retreated into her bedroom and began peeling her clothes off of herself. She needed a shower.

-0-0-0-0-0-

As Piper dragged herself out of the shower she checked her phone. 12:30. "That was probably the quickest shower I have ever had." She thought to herself. She may have been late but she certainly wasn't trying to rush. If she was ever on time Polly would surely have a heart attack.

Polly and Piper lived in the nice part of the neighborhood which meant the town center was only minutes away from their houses, which was lucky for Piper as she was meant to be meeting Polly outside the town half in less than half an hour.

-0-0-0-0-0-

As Alex dragged herself out of the shower she checked her phone.

2 NEW MESSAGES

NICKY  
 _Will meet you at the diner tonight, got no hot date so will be on the prowl; you can be my wing woman ;)_

SYLVIE

 _Why aren't you replying to any of my texts? It's been three days._

She walked through the hallway and into her bedroom where she threw her phone onto the bed. Neither text really needed a reply.

She threw herself onto the bed next to where her phone lay. Wrapped up in a towel and slightly out of breath after her shower, she quickly fell asleep.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper jogged hastily into town, luckily running was one of her strong suits. It was only quarter past 1 when Piper finally appeared at Polly's feet.

"Shit, Piper, you are almost on time for once."

Piper simply laughed at Polly's comment.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Over an hour later Alex awoke to the sound of the Ice cream van driving by the house. She was so used to the neighborhood she immediately knew it was past four. She wrestled her way out of the damp towel she was encased in and frantically skimmed her hands over the bed sheets in an attempt to find her phone. 16:24. She jumped up from her seated position and rushed around her room gathering her work uniform and threw them on, once again slicking her hair back into a ponytail.

Hopping into the living room she pulled on a shoe and then flopped onto the sofa to yank on the second, she loosely tied the laces and grabbed her leathers from the same place she left them last night, the back of the sofa.

"I'm late mom, gotta go, love you bye." Alex gushed, slightly out of breath as she slammed the door behind herself.

Diane and Elizabeth just looked at each other from their places in the kitchen and shook their heads simultaneously pausing slightly before bursting out laughing.

"If she is ever on time it will be a miracle" Diane laughed at Elizabeth's comment.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper and Polly spent the day rushing around the town much to Piper's dismay; she really wasn't up for rushing 'round like a headless chicken. Finally Polly began to slow down about 6 o'clock and Piper knew exactly why, Polly had been so caught up with finding Pete the 'Perfect' present she had completely forgotten to eat and Piper knew how important food was to Polly.

Eventually they headed back towards Polly's house as both Piper and Polly now had armfuls of shopping bags from all sorts of different places. All of the bags belonged to Polly but Piper appeared to be carrying the majority of them, Polly used the excuse that she needed to get her money out at the cash register and Piper made her promise to feed her. The plan was for the pair to head back to Polly's to order Chinese takeout so Piper could help Polly wrap the presents she had bought but as the pair walked past a diner, the smell of coffee lured them in.

"Just a drink" Polly warned. "Then we have to go wrap these presents for Pete" She lifted up the bags she was carrying, gesturing them towards Piper.

Piper adored her best friend, but at the same time she despised her. She really didn't fancy having to wrap presents whilst she listened to Polly rant on about how Pete is perfect and how Piper really needed to find herself a man.

Piper really didn't fancy that tonight, she fancied walking into the nearest bar, buying a margherita, making out with the hottest person in there and then wobbling home. "Fat chance of that happening!" she thought to herself.

As they ordered their drinks from a short blonde, overly chipper young woman they took a seat.

Piper mindlessly stared out of the window sipping her coffee slowly as Polly ranted on about everything under the sun. She was thinking about Elizabeth and what her and Diane were doing tonight, hopefully having a more enjoyable day than she herself was having she thought to herself.

"Are you even listening to me Piper?" Polly almost yelled smacking her hand onto the table in front of Piper making her jump.

"Shit Pol, I was listening, but get this, I was doing that babysitting job the other night and…" Piper went off on her own rant about Elizabeth and her family and how different they were to her.

"They are broke Polly, I gave the woman the first night free, I felt so sorry for them."

At that moment a tall raven-haired woman walked over, purposefully bending at the waist in order to show her cleavage at the two women in the booth. "Can I get you a refill?" she offered as the pair continued talking.

"There are three of them, in one tiny apartment Pol." She paused to answer the waitress "Yes please" she looked back at Polly to continue the conversation. ""They are broke Polly, I gave the Diane the first night free, and I felt so sorry for them. They don't have what we have. The youngest girl, she had secondhand Star Wars sheets."

The tall dark haired waitress moved her hand to wipe the coffee spout when she purposefully jutted forward, spilling the coffee all over the blonde's lap.

"Oops, sorry." She smirked in a sarcastic tone as she walked away from the table. She would of usually used her 'I'm going to kill you bitch' tone and speech but considering her boss was in and wasn't pleased with her being over half an hour late she settled for that instead.

"Hey Pipes, I think that bitch waitress did that on purpose."

"You think?" She squealed as she stood up abruptly attempting to brush the coffee off of her legs.

"I'm going to the bathroom" She huffed as she stormed across the diner, her shoes squeaking slightly as they maneuvered the tiled flooring.

A/N : Sorry this update took so long. Keep the reviews coming.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Thank you for all of your wonderful reviews, especially you I3VauseMan you really made me smile. Sorry this update took a few days, my internet was down.

 **CHAPTER FOUR**

Alex arrived to work over 30 minutes , however, for once, was on time for Alex's shift, she was already sitting at the bar when Alex arrived.

The raven-haired girl threw her wild maned friend a knowing look and a sarcastic eye roll as she walked through the diner's large glass double doors before disappearing into the kitchen.

She emerged two minutes later with a tea towel slung over her shoulder and her usual uniform on.

"Hey Nick, found any hot girls yet?" Alex questioned, leaning over the counter top.

"Nah, no one yet." Nicky seemed unusually down-hearted.

Alex's eyes scanned the diner, there were only three tables occupied, the first held a young family, the mother may well have been pretty if she didn't look so tired and actually wore clothes that fitted. The second table consisted of a group of young girls, seven of them, perhaps thirteen or fourteen in age, six of them appeared to be talking about their boyfriends but the seventh girl reminded Alex of her younger self. She didn't really seem to be engaging in conversation, she just sat at the end of the table facing an empty chair twiddling spaghetti with her fork and every now and again looking up and smiling. For a moment she thought about Elizabeth and how easily that young girl could be her in six or seven years time, she shuddered at the thought. The third table seemed to be acting as a cock blocker as the pair, roughly around Alex and Nicky's age, made out wildly over the table. The guy wore a sweater and seemed like the guy you settle for in your mid thirties because you've had all the adventure you can have. The girl had brown curly locks that hung down to her shoulders and red lips that never seemed to smudge no matter how hard she kissed that guy.

Alex scoffed in disgust before turning her attention to Nicky. "Why so down-hearted kid, you know that the diner is in no place to pick up chicks."

Nicky sighed heavily. "The straight ones always fuck you over, you know."

Alex replied immediately, her quick wit always evident "Straight has never been a problem for me"

Nicky gazed over at the third table again and sighed, that's when Alex realized.

"Hey, Nick, you can't seriously be pining over that girl, you don't even know what she looks like. She could be ugly for all you know."

Nicky didn't take her eyes off of the couple "I saw her when she went to the bathroom before you came in Vause, she is hot."

The raven-haired girl sighed "What happened that steel cage keeping your heart safe eh?"

"I just said she was pretty Vause, it's not like I admitted my undying devotion to her or anything."

That was more like Nicky, sassy and sarcastic.

"Good news Nick, cause there's fresh meat coming through the doors to hell."

The crazy haired girl's eyes snapped straight to the diner's doors where two girls walked in laden down with shopping bags.

Nicky laughed. "I bet you they are both straight Vause, you gonna serve 'em?"

Alex nonchalantly looked over at the pair now seated in the booth and watched as 'perky boobs', as Nicky so kindly nicknamed her, happily skipped over to serve the two girls.

The two girls seemed fairly tired, the blonde specifically. She looked as if her mind was elsewhere as she gazed out of the window, her friend continued talking at her but Alex could tell that she didn't really care for what was being said.

Perky boobs quickly returned with their drinks. The blonde grabbed her drink, thanked the waitress and returned her gaze to the window.

"If they are gay I want the blonde one" Nicky quipped looking slightly perkier than she had five minutes ago. Alex was too involved watching the blonde in the booth to notice that the third table was now clear and the kissy couple were nowhere to be seen.

"No chance." Alex spluttered, "If they are gay then I want the blonde, the other on talks too much. You know how to handle that, I hate the talkers. Plus she seems quiet, I bet you I could make her scream."

"At least I could take her back to my place, offer her a bed instead of the storage closet at the back of the diner."

"Screw you Nicky, you know that's not fair."

"Hey, nothing's fair in this world Vause, plus we don't even know if she is gay or not."

"Well let's make her take the test then." Alex's face lit up.

"Fuck, Vause, you can't just walk straight up to a girl and expect her to take the Kinsey scale test, shit doesn't work that way." Nicky's thick accent was raised to almost a squeal as she recoiled in horror at Alex's proposal. She was all for being up front and everything but this took the mick.

"Not that test, jackass. The cleavage test, it's a little test I created myself, got to entertain myself working here otherwise I'd be bored shitless. I walk over there, offer them a refill, lean purposefully over the table presenting my cleavage, if they look then look away they are probably straight, if they stare, they are probably gay and if they don't look at all they are probably a closeted gay."

Nicky laughed, "Well shit Vause, you've got this all mapped out haven't you?"

Alex nodded her head slowly "Here goes nothing"

Nicky watched, appreciating the genius that was Alex Vause.

Alex grabbed a pot of coffee from the perculator and headed towards the booth. As she arrived at the two women she was surprised to see the pair had switched roles. The blonde was now talking at the other brunette girl and she seemed slightly disinterested as to what her friend had to say. The raven-haired beauty leaned forward, bending at the hips and pushing her arms towards each other purposefully enhancing and flaunting her cleavage. That's when Alex heard it.

"They are broke Polly, I gave the woman the first night free, I felt so sorry for them."

Alex paused. "They can't possibly be talking about my family?" She thought to herself.

"Can I get you a refill?" Alex asked gesturing forward with the coffee pot spout.

"There's three of them, in one tiny apartment Pol." The blonde said, not taking her eyes off of her companion.

"What are the chances that this is that Piper girl, the babysitter?" She thought again.

The blonde glanced up briefly and met her gaze with the waitress. "Yes please." Then she returned her gaze to her friend.

"They are broke Polly, I gave Diane the first night free, I felt so sorry for them. They don't have what we have. The youngest girl, she had secondhand Star Wars sheets."

"What a bitch" Alex thought to herself. She had enough information now to justify the 'accidental' spillage of coffee into this girls lap. She jutted forward slightly, just enough to make it look like she had tripped, throwing fairly warm coffee into the lap of the blonde. She had done this enough times now that it appeared to be a perfected art. She was impressed by her own handiwork.

"Oops." Alex said, her voice laden with sarcastic intonation.

She sauntered back behind the bar with no obvious intention of helping the blonde clean herself up.

"Is the coffee spillage part of the test or was that a happy accident?" Nicky quipped as Alex returned to her usual stance, stood by Nicky, leaning over the bar.

"It looked like an accident?" She questioned "Good."

The raven-haired beauty lifted to a standing position, chest puffed out in a defensive manner as the blonde stepped out of the booth and headed towards her but lucky for Alex the blonde diverted herself and instead headed towards the toilets.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper stormed through the doors of the bathroom muttering under her breath "Stupid bitch." The blonde couldn't understand what she had done to deserve this. All she knew was that this was done on purpose by that dark haired bitch behind the bar.

A scruffy haired woman came into the bathroom.

"You okay?" she asked.

It was obvious that she was talking to Piper as there was no one else in the bathroom.

"Yeah I guess." Piper shrugged her shoulders and went back to dabbing her jeans dry with a paper towel.

"Ignore her, she can be a real bitch sometimes but she means well."

"I would never have guessed." Piper replied, a snarky tone in her voice.

"Suit yourself" The frizzy haired girl said holding her hands up, palms facing the sky, shoulders lifted slightly as she turned around and left.

Piper followed shortly after, heading straight to the booth where her friend was sat.

"Let's leave" She commanded, picking up the bags from their place on the cushioned benches.

Polly threw a few notes and a handful of coins onto the counter towards Alex and shot her a glare as she walked away.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Nicky returned from the bathroom and returned to her usual bar stool.

"Yup, she's pissed alright." The frizzy haired girl turned her stool round to face Alex.

"Good, no bitch fucks with my family." Alex replied. She glared over at the girl in the booth, the brunette met her gaze and looked away abruptly.

She tutted when the blonde went storming over to her friend demanding to leave.

"Stroppy bitch." Alex muttered under her breath. Nicky heard.

The brunette threw Alex some notes and coins and a glare.

"If looks could kill..." Nicky began.

"I'd be dead." Alex finished, dragging the money off of the counter and tapping the till wildly.

"Ooh look, I can't be that bad, they even left me a tip." Alex chuckled pocketing the change.

-0-0-0-0-0-

As Piper and Polly returned to Polly's the blonde changed out of her jeans and into a pair of Polly's sweats.

"I'll order food." Polly shouted up as Piper got changed.

"I'll have whatever you're having." she shouted back down.

After the pair ate they sat in Polly's lounge. The room was set out with a corner sofa against two of the four walls, a fireplace on the third and an 80 inch television on the fourth. Polly's parents were out of town but the fire was still lit when they walked in. Piper was confused by this as the fireplace always seemed to hold a roaring fire but no one was ever seen stoking it and as far as Piper could remember the fire was never out.

Polly poured the pair a second glass of wine and they moved from the sofa to the floor. Piper listened to what Polly was saying but she definitely wasn't concentrating properly, once again her mind was back at the diner, still trying to figure out the entire situation.

"Hey Piper, concentrate, the blue wrapping paper is for..." Polly purposefully left a pause in her speech expecting Piper to fill in the blank as she had already explained what each of the colored wrapping papers were for. Piper's face drew a blank. "Clothes Piper, the blue wrapping paper is for clothes. Ugh, do you ever listen to me Piper."

"Uh, sorry Pol." the blonde offered up a less than convincing apology to Polly as she stared into the fireplace.

"You really are away with the fairies tonight aren't you Piper? Why don't you go home and sleep, that business at the diner really fucked you up didn't it. I can wrap these presents by myself, go home in my sweats if you want just bring 'em back tomorrow."

Piper stood up slowly, still not concentrating on what she was doing.

"Sorry Pol." She apologized again as she left the room.

"Don't forget about Pete's birthday party at the weekend, you promised you'd be there."

Piper hummed approvingly before leaving through the front door, she only lived a street away and so she wasn't too fussed that she was walking around in sweats.

When she arrived home her family had returned too. She assumed that Cal and Danny were asleep or at least in their rooms as it was obvious from the moment she walked through the door that her mother was drunk.

"If you weren't fucking sleeping around then we wouldn't have this problem would we?" She slurred.

Piper slammed the front door announcing her arrival, her parents were too caught up in their argument to hear it though.

"I don't know what you're on about Carol, you're the only woman I want."

The whole house stank of alcohol and cigarettes. Piper headed towards the kitchen where the pair were obviously situated. She intended on telling them to shut the hell up, she was going up to bed.

"BULLSHIT!" Carol screamed, Piper was convinced she felt the floor vibrate. That was when the blonde heard a glass smash.

"Shit, better go clean that up before someone gets hurt" She thought to herself, her parents would probably forget to tidy it up as the usual routine went Carol would eventually pass out on the sofa and her dad would probably carry her to bed and the kitchen would be left in disarray.

As she headed into the kitchen she was mortified to find her mother wielding a half broken bottle towards her father. Carol began taking slow steps towards Bill shaking wildly.

Piper stepped into the kitchen and dashed forward into the gap between the pair facing her mother holding her hands up in surrender.

"STOP!" She yelled as her mother tripped forward, legs unable to steady her, she thrust the bottle directly into Piper's hand.

The whole situation was very surreal for Piper and this surrealism was aided by her not feeling pain for a few seconds, it felt like minutes. Carol gasped in horror as she immediately seemed to sober up and took a step back inadvertently ripping the bottle from it's place lodged in Piper's hand, that's when she felt the pain. Searing pain ripped through Piper's entire body weakening her legs and pulling her to the ground. She watched as the blood trickled from each of the four holes in her hand.

"You stupid girl Piper, you shouldn't have gotten in the way!" Scolded Carol. Of course it had to be Piper's fault, was she expecting anything other.

"GO TO BED!" Bill screamed at Carol as he stormed over gripping her harshly by the shoulders and pushing her out into the hallway slamming the kitchen door behind him as he re-entered.

"Are you okay Piper?" he gushed grabbing the first aid kit from the top of the cupboard.

Piper took a sharp intake of breath through her teeth as her dad attempted to tidy up her wound. Once he was done bandaging her he ushered her out of the room.

"Go to bed Piper, I'll clean this mess up." She headed up the stairs as Bill spoke again. "Remember, secrets are best kept Piper, I don't want your brothers knowing about this."

Piper nodded her head knowingly and she continued her way up the stairs and into her bedroom where she took her sweats and bra off one-handed and curled up in bed. Tears rolled from her eyes as she bit her lip hoping to silence her cry, she stayed in the same position until she finally fell asleep.

-0-0-0-0-0-

As Alex's shift finished and she locked up Nicky headed home as she usually did and Alex hopped aboard her rust-bucket and began the trip home with her usual showy wheel spin.

As Alex returned home her mother was still awake.

"Why you still awake mum? You've got work in the morning get to bed.

Diane turned to Alex and let out a meek smile. The younger Vause could sense something was wrong and a stray tear rolled down the older Vause's face.

"Please don't cry mom, what's wrong?" Alex took off her leathers and threw them over to the coat hook behind the door, she missed and the outfit fell to the floor bundling itself up into a little ball, she made a mental note to move them later.

Alex slumped onto the sofa next to Diane and immediately threw her arms around her mother. Diane sniffed loudly and quickly pulled back from Alex's embrace.

"I've lost the job at the bed shop so I won't be going to work tomorrow hun." Diane sniffed again.

"Not a problem mom, don't worry about it, we can survive now that I have this job. Plus you got a pay rise in your other job at Wendy's. "

Diane knew that this was true but she felt like a failure, she didn't want to have to rel on her daughters income but she had to face the fact that she was becoming more and more dependent on the extra money.

Alex headed to the kitchen to look in the fridge, two beers were left over from last night. She grabbed them from the back of the fridge, grabbed the bottle opener from the cutlery draw and opened the bottles. Diane walked over to the counter an sat down on one of the bar stool type chairs. Alex pushed a beer towards her mother.

"Hey mom, I think I met the babysitter today, Piper or whatever her name is."

"Oh yeah darling. What did you think of her? She's nice right?"

"I'm not sure we are talking about the same girl mom, the girl that was at the diner today was talking about us, saying that she felt sorry for us. She was telling her friend that she felt sorry for us and she was talking about Liz's Star Wars sheets!" Alex volume was raising higher and higher along with the pitch of her voice as she spoke.

"People are allowed to talk Alex, she didn't lie or talk crap about us did she?"

"No" Alex admitted looking at the floor. She was almost instantly subdued by her mother."I guess not."

"There you go then, no need to flip your top."

"I still don't like her" Alex began "Can we get a different one, I don't want her talking like that with Elizabeth, making her think that she's less than everyone else."

"We aren't getting rid of her Alex, Elizabeth actually likes this one. In fact, I would probably go so far as to say she was smitten with Piper. She didn't stop talking about her all day. Plus, she's cheap, she halved the price she was asking by half and God knows we need that right now."

Alex couldn't argue with that, if Elizabeth was happy and her mother was happy then she should be happy too, but she couldn't help but shake the thought that Piper was going to be trouble in some way or another.

"I don't want her treating us like a charity case though mom. You aren't going to accept any more free nights no matter how hard she tries though okay mom?"

Diane laughed at her daughter "I won't mom, I promise." Diane joked, she felt strange when the roles were reversed and she was frequently left asking herself who was looking after who. "You'll grow to like her Al."

Alex wasn't convinced "If you say so mom." The younger Vause downed her drink in a very unladylike manner and slammed her bottle down on the counter wiping her mouth with her forearm. "I'm gonna head to bed mom, you should too."

"There you go again Al, I'd like to remind you again that I am the mother. Oh and you'll have to wait with Elizabeth tomorrow for the babysitter as I have an appointment with the bank. She should be coming around half three." Diane's voice got louder and louder as Alex walked further away.

"M'kay" Alex replied before shutting her bedroom door.

Diane tutted and rolled her eyes. "That girl" she muttered under her breath as she hopped off of the stool and headed to her own bedroom.

A/N: I was wondering if there was any characters or references from the show that you would like me to include from here on in. If you PM me with them or leave them in a review I will try my damn best to fit them in. Also, do you think I should make Alex join the cartel or do you guys want me to leave it out? And one final thing, do you want me to change to first person when I am doing the different characters or shall I stay in third person. I can do either although it may help to do first person in later chapters.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I'm sorry that this is a short chapter but I thought you lovely people would like an update. I'm at work this weekend but I will try my best to update again Saturday night. Thanks again I3 Vauseman, you made me smile again :) I like your thoughts on Larry and the job situation, I will definitely keep Alex out of college but that doesn't mean she can't have talent to get herself a good job at Chapman Publications ;) and Vausemaniac, thanks for your review too, you also made me smile, definitely no Stella don't worry, I hated her!

CHAPTER FIVE

Piper woke up to a searing pain in her left hand. It was incredible, she had almost forgotten the events of last night until she looked over at her hand, the blood had managed to soak it's way through the bandages. She winced as she flexed her fingers and swung her legs over the side of the bed.

The blonde stood up a little too quickly resulting in head rush, she steadied herself as her vision became clear again.

Once again she awoke to an empty house.

"Probably all avoiding me" She thought to herself as she rifled through her draws for something to wear, she hadn't even acknowledged the time. A pain shot threw her hand again.

"Shit" she muttered as she withdrew her injured hand from the draw. Forget clothes, she needed to put a fresh bandage on.

As Piper headed downstairs she could hear the obnoxious ticking of the kitchen clock. It always seemed the loudest when she was either alone, which was to be expected, or late, it just so happened that this time it was both. She glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that it was quarter past 2. She had slept in way too long. The painkillers she took at roughly 4 o'clock this morning must have knocked her out. She barely remembered taking them until she saw the note from her dad sitting on the side.

It read:

'Boys gone to school, don't take anymore painkillers until at least 10 o'clock if you wake up before then. I have taken your mother out for the day so you don't have to face her. See you later. Dad xx.'

Piper glanced up at the clock again, she'd better hurry if she wanted to make it across town in time. She quickly grabbed the first aid kit off of the cupboard and loosely bandaged her hand over the existing bandage, she couldn't face seeing the wound yet and she had things to do.

The blonde downed two pain killers and a glass of water and dashed back upstairs. She didn't have time to shower so she scraped her hair back into a messy ponytail. "I'll fix that on the bus" she thought to herself as she looked in the mirror.

Shortly after she had realized the time she was headed out of the door. Piper was rarely on time for anything but she was also rarely incredibly late. The rain poured down as she stood at her bus stop bouncing from one foot to the other just to keep herself her phone time against the bus timetable she realized she had a text message. It was 3:05 there would be a bus in about three minutes but it usually took almost three quarters of an hour to get to the other side of town on the bus and the tube takes almost as long with walking to the nearest tube stop and switching trains. Not wanting to get her phone too wet she forcefully shoved it back into her pocket, thankful that her injured hand was her left and not her right.

She jumped onto the bus, scanned her pre-paid bus pass and took a seat near the back. "This is going to be a long journey" she thought.

Piper was roughly five minutes into her journey when she decided upon sending Diane a text to say that she was going to be late, completely forgetting that she had a text until she removed the phone from her pocket.

1 NEW MESSAGE

DIANE VAUSE:

Hey Piper, no need to rush, I don't need you until four, Alex is picking Elizabeth up from school and so she will meet you back at the apartment. Thanks xxx

Piper let out an audible sigh before relaxing slightly into her damp uncomfortable bus seat. At least she didn't have to run from the bus stop to the apartment now.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"Hey kid, mum sent me to pick you up today." Alex announced as she stepped into the classroom. "We've got 30 minutes before the babysitter arrives, you wanna get ice cream?" She ruffled Elizabeth's hair affectionately.

"Yay, Piper's coming again. I like her Alex, you would too, she's pretty."

Alex laughed at Elizabeth's naivety, she frequently forgot that Elizabeth was only six.

"I'm sure I would kid but I don't plan on getting to know her, she's coming to look after you not make friends with me."

Elizabeth smiled up at Alex as they walked, it was a smile that reached her eyes, she adored her older sister. "She's old like you too." Elizabeth giggled.

"Old, eh?" Alex queried laughing at her younger sister. She scooped her up in her arms and threw her onto her back before running down the road to the ice cream parlor.

It wasn't raining on Alex's side of the town but it wasn't exactly warm either. Elizabeth didn't care that it wasn't ice cream weather, she was six, it was always ice cream weather to her.

The pair got their usual ice creams and headed back slowly strolling to the apartment block they lived in, neither girl really said much but the silence was a comfortable one.

As they climbed the stairs to the apartment Alex noted the time, it was a couple of minutes past four.

"Surely the babysitter won't be here already" She thought to herself but as she arrived at her front door she was proven wrong. The babysitter was already stood at the door waiting, looking rather damp.

"Piper!" Elizabeth gushed as she dashed over to the damp woman wrapping her arms around the blonde's waist.

"Careful kid! I'm a bit wet and you appear to be very sticky." Piper laughed as she wiped ice cream from the corner of Elizabeth's mouth.

Alex meanwhile, unlocked the door and pushed it wide open. "Go on kid, go put your pot in the bin and then go and wash your face, change out of your uniform too while you are at it."

Elizabeth looked up at Piper.

"I think you'd best do what your sister says" Piper gestured towards the kitchen.

"Go on." Alex added from her place standing by the kitchen counter. "Piper will still be here when you get back." She chuckled as Elizabeth threw her pot into the bin and then slinked off into her bedroom.

Piper stepped through the door and took her hood down revealing dry blonde hair before closing the door behind her.

Alex stood behind the breakfast counter now rifling through the freezer. Piper took her coat off and hung it on the coat hook behind the door before taking off her black Doc Martens. She noticed the black leathers on the floor and picked them up too throwing them over the coat hook. The silence between the pair was growing and becoming more awkward. Elizabeth seemed to be taking a long time doing whatever she was doing and Alex seemed to be getting more aggressive with the frozen goods. Piper headed over to the kitchen counter and took a seat on one of the stools.

"I guess I'd better break this awkward silence then, I'm assuming that the woman stood in front of me is the Alex that Elizabeth speaks of." Piper thought to herself.

"Looking for something?" Piper asked as she rested her elbows on the counter and propped her chin up with her hands before wincing and sucking air sharply through her teeth.

Alex stood up straight immediately. "Looking to see there's frozen pasties, they are Elizabeth's favorite, no luck I'm afraid."

The room fell silent for a few minutes as Alex played with her keys on the counter top. Piper attempted to rest her chin on her hands and once again winced in pain.

Alex's head snapped up to look at Piper, she had become a lot more perceptive since the birth of Elizabeth. "You okay kid? What did you do?"

Piper glanced at her hand again, the blood appeared to have seeped through the second bandage now. "Cut it, fell over." Her answer was short and sweet but Alex saw through the lie, yet another skill she had gained since Elizabeth had been born.

"Bullshit, let me see." Alex held her palm upwards in front of Piper who wasn't entirely sure of the situation. Piper glanced up to look Alex in the eye, the raven haired girl simply lifted her eyebrows slightly and looked down at her palm again. Piper, now reassured place her injured left hand palm up in Alex's hand.

"Is there two bandages on here?" Alex asked slightly bemused at the whole situation and completely ignoring the time.

"Mhm, I was running late, didn't have time to change it properly."

Alex unraveled the first bandage. "It's obvious you're a bleeder!" She joked as she began unraveling the second bandage.

Piper flinched as Alex pulled the steri-pad back to reveal four holes. The raven-haired beauty visibly winced, she wasn't usually squeamish but someone certainly did a good job in fucking this girl's hand up. She grabbed the first aid kit from under the sink and went to work cleaning up Piper's hand.

"Bullshit did you fall, how did you do this?" Alex questioned cleaning Piper's hand.

The blonde took a sharp intake of breath as Alex ran a saline soaked steri-pad over the wounds.

"I told you, I fell, there was some glass, It was dark." The dark-haired girl simply narrowed her eyes at Piper and threw her a suspicious look, she didn't believe her lies but she knew better than to pry too far. She pulled the new bandage tight around Piper's hand taking slight pleasure in the way she winced.

"There had better not be some sleazy abusive ass of a boyfriend behind this injury!" Alex scolded, she didn't know why but she was immediately protective of this girl. Maybe t was the 'deer caught in the headlights' look she had going on.

"Not really my thing." Piper replied admiring Alex's handiwork.

"Boys?" Alex questioned hope evident in her voice. She needed a new one night stand, and maybe, just maybe, if her mum walked in on them together she would get her fired. She liked the plan she was formulating.

"Relationships." The blonde replied.

Alex was slightly disappointed by the situation although a girl being straight had never been an issue for her before. She saw Piper as a challenge now.

"Me either." A silence fell upon the pair again and Alex picked up her phone which had buzzed a few minutes earlier. She didn't even check the text when she realized what time it was. 4:29. She was going to be late.

"Shit." Alex mumbled as she dashed off into her room. Just then Elizabeth emerged from her bedroom wearing a cat onesie and wielding an arm full of Barbie's and clothes for them.

"Did Alex go without saying bye?" The young Vause questioned, disappointment evident in her voice.

"No kid don't worry, she just dashed into her room, don't know why." Piper mentally cursed herself as she noticed she had already picked up Alex's nicknames.

"Probably late for work again" Elizabeth stated as she threw her Barbie's onto the kitchen counter and climbed up onto the stool next to Piper.

Just as Elizabeth sat down on the stool Alex emerged from her room, hopping as she put her shoes on and then stopping at the sofa to loosely tie her shoelaces as she always did. The raven-haired girl then got up from the sofa and rushed over to kiss her sister on the head, almost pulling her off the stool as she did so. She patted Piper's arm as she headed to the door.

"Be good for Piper." She shouted shutting the door behind her.

Elizabeth tutted and rolled her eyes before looking over at the door. The blonde couldn't quite figure out why, this family was still an enigma to her.

Just as Piper opened her mouth to ask why, Alex burst through the door looking frantically around the room. That's when Piper noticed the uniform. Alex's hair was let down and she seemed flustered but it was definitely the same woman that spilt coffee in her lap. Just then it all clicked for Piper.

"That's why she spilt coffee on me, I was talking about her family when she approached the table, I was telling Polly all about how I felt sorry for this family." she thought to herself. She made a mental note to apologize to Alex. It made more sense for Alex to be pitying her family after the events of last night but Piper didn't plan on telling her that.

"Leathers are on the coat hook" Elizabeth stated with a giggle in her voice.

"Love you bye." She gushed as she slammed the door once again and ran downstairs.

At this point Piper was laughing too. "You know her too well." She managed to utter between giggles. Elizabeth's laugh was infectious.

"I know her well enough to know that she was showing off then, she never kisses me or tells me she loves me unless she is trying to impress someone."

"Your sister is just being nice." Piper stated although she had a feeling that what she was saying was a little truthful. Alex seemed like the type to show off a little at every opportunity.

"She does it to impress all the babysitters." Elizabeth stated, a little matter of fact.

"She's nice, she helped me to bandage my hand." Piper replied showing Elizabeth Alex's handiwork. "See."

"She's just showing off, how'd you do that anyway?" The youngest Vause asked pointing at her hand.

"Fell over, cut it." Piper stated in the same manner she had to Alex.

"That's a lie." Elizabeth stated before passing Piper a Barbie.

"Why do all of the Vause's seem to be able to see right through my lies?" She thought to herself.

A/N: Do you guys want Lorna and Nicky to become a pair or not? Also you all said no to the cartel so no cartel, the first person sections will come later on, I'm sorry if this chapter isn't as good as you guys wanted it to be, I didn't want their first meet to be cliche. The next chapter should be longer and much more interesting. Keep the reviews coming.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Thanks again to all for your wonderful reviews. I think you guys deserved another update so here it is. I'm afraid that it is yet another short one but I wanted to get it up tonight so that you wonderful people could read it and leave me reviews to read whilst I am at work tomorrow. I'd like to thank Vausemaniac for the review and the positive comments, don't worry, Vauseman will be coming soon. I would also like to thank I3VauseMan for the review and positive comments as well, you never fail to make me smile and I love reading your reviews, I don't particularly enjoy my job though I'm afraid, I just cook so I stand in a sweltering kitchen all day! I'd also like to thank Anotherhuman212, your review was also very useful to me and I like the playdate idea, I might use that later on as a way for Piper and Alex to get to know eachother a lot better. As promised I have introduced Lorna to the mix and I hope her entrance to the story is satisfactory.

 **CHAPTER SIX**

The night passed without a problem for Piper although she did have to admit that she let Elizabeth stay up a little later to watch a documentary on sharks. She realized shortly into the show that it could be nightmare material for six year olds and apologized profusely to Diane who just laughed it off.

"Don't worry Piper, she watches shark programmes all the time, she loves them."

Piper was both concerned and relieved about Elizabeth's shark attraction.

"Sometimes she pretends she is a fish and makes Alex chase her around the apartment pretending she is a shark. I'm surprised she didn't make you do it."

She didn't make Piper play the game. "No, she didn't make me play it, perhaps it's a game she saves just for her and Alex." She offered, now knowing some length of the close bond they shared.

"Perhaps it was just too late." Diane replied as she unpacked groceries in the kitchen.

"You guys make such a wonderful family unit you know." Piper stated as she took a seat on one of the stools, she still felt guilty for what she had said about the family to Polly. " you are always so happy and loving."

Diane laughed. "You did meet Alex right?"

"Yes, I did, she works at Neptune's Diner doesn't she? I live over on that side of the town and I nip in sometimes. Oh, and she bandaged my hand for me." Piper held out her hand towards Diane showing her Alex's handiwork.

Diane scrunched the brown paper bags up and put them in the bin before looking over at the young girls offered hand. "Yeah she does. She didn't do that to you did she?" The oldest Vause looked panic stricken, she knew Alex had a 'no shit' attitude.

Piper shook her head wildly from side to side, partially to emphasize the fact that it wasn't Alex who had caused the injury and partially because she wanted to shake the memory of the real cause. "God no." Piper paused, she didn't want to offend this family anymore than she already had. "I'm sorry, are you religious?".

The oldest Vause laughed. "Oh God no!"

Piper realized she was beginning to really like this woman as they both laughed in unison. Diane reached for the blonde's left hand before stopping just short of her hand. She looked up at Piper and lifted her eyebrows as if to ask permission to carry on, Piper nodded. She laughed internally as she and Alex stood in exactly the same positions hours earlier and she was faced with the same eyebrow lift from her. "Like mother like daughter" Piper thought to herself. She wondered if Elizabeth did the same thing and made a mental note to watch out for it in the future.

"She was a girl scout." Diane stated as if this was the answer to all of Piper's questions. "She was most proud of her first aid badge. She had to quit when we couldn't afford anymore which was a shame really."

Piper hummed in agreement, imagining a young Alex running around in a scout's uniform.

"How'd you do it kid?" Diane questioned looking at the palm of Piper's hand where the blood was once again threatening to seep through the bandage.

"I tripped, fell over, cut my hand."

The tall woman looked into Piper's eyes with a mix of sadness and love and asked the question again. "How'd you do it kid?"

The blonde stumbled on her words this time. "I...I told you...I..."

"Fell, I know, now tell me the truth. Your life is your life Piper but I don't like being lied to, if you don't want to tell me then just say so. " Diane threw a slightly disapproving look towards Piper but there was still love in her eyes.

Piper simply began crying, she wasn't one for sharing emotions on the best of days let alone when something like this had happened to her. Diane rushed round to the other side of the counter to comfort the girl. The blonde placed her head in her hands and tried to compose herself. Diane threw her arms around the crying girl which took her by surprise, she wasn't used to the loving embrace of a mother, this made her lose herself again as she gave into the second wave of threatening tears. Piper quivered slightly but Diane simply held her tighter. Diane didn't have an abundance of money but she did have love and she gave it away in bundles. But you know what they say, money can't buy you love or happiness.

After a minute or so Piper had composed herself enough to speak. "I...I'm sorry..I should go." She sniffed loudly.

"Nonsense dear, you are going to stay here with me for a while and have a drink, I can make you a cup of tea if you like?"

Piper was not used to this sort of care and attention and so was tor between accepting it while she can or just leaving, not accepting it at all. She chose the latter. "A cup of tea would be lovely Mrs. Vause." She had composed herself a considerable amount more now that Diane had peeled herself away from her.

"I've told you before Piper, call me Diane, was my mother." Upon hearing the 'was' Piper figured that her mother was dead. She made a mental reminder to never call her that again.

"I'm sorry Diane."

"And stop apologizing kid, it's not a good look on you." Diane laughed slightly as she pushed the cup of tea across the counter to Piper and lifted her own. "Now, are you going to join me on the sofa and tell me where you really got that injury from or are you going to cry again?" The oldest Vause headed towards the sofa.

"I'll join you on the sofa." Piper giggled slightly, she felt herself falling into this enigma of a family and the scary part for the blonde was that she seemed to be fitting right in, she already felt that she could trust Diane and decided that she wasn't worth lying to, she was never going to meet her parents, they lived on the opposite side of town.

"It was a fight, between my parents, I jumped in the middle of it, it's my fault, I shouldn't of been so stupid..." She began. Neither of the pair knew what time it was but they were sure to talk way into the night.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex arrived at the diner twenty minutes late yet again this week. She was lucky that she still held the threat of a sexual harassment lawsuit against her boss otherwise she probably would have been fired by now.

As she entered the diner she was immediately aware of her frizzy-haired friend sat at the bar with her usual soda in hand staring over at what the pair had named 'the third table'. Alex found it easier to remember orders by the table numbers she had created in her mind rather than faces. She wasn't too good with faces.

After walking through the back of the kitchen and dropping her stuff off in the locker room in the back of the diner she snuck up behind Nicky who jumped visibly when Alex spoke.

"I hope you paid for that drink this time."

"Shit Vause, you nearly gave me a heart attack, you don't want m on the operating table having yet another open heart surgery do you?"

Alex remembered the last time Nicky was on the operating table, she nearly died. Since Nicky was a baby she had had a hole in heart and had many surgeries, the latest of which was the most dangerous, she had gotten an infection in the heart after having a particularly bad cold that turned into pneumonia. Her heart stopped beating and was pronounced clinically dead but they managed to restart her heart and here she was. Alex hated remembering that day as it was the one and only day she opened the door to th steel cage of her heart. She found a weakness, she was attached to Nicky, but Alex would never admit it.

"God no." Alex stated in a 'matter-of-fact' manner. "You still pining over that girl?"

Nicky peeled her eyes away from the girl and looked back at Alex. "Look, she's been there for almost an hour now and he hasn't turned up. I think she's been stood up, should I go over."

Alex shrugged. "I would personally say no because I know that one day she will inevitably fuck you over and break your heart but seeing as you always do the opposite of what I say then sure, go ahead."

Nicky looked like an eager puppy waiting for Alex to throw a stick. "Is that a yes or a no then?"

The raven-haired girl laughed. "Go on, go get 'em tiger." She joked.

Alex watched as Nicky tried to slink her way over to the table all suave and sophisticated but she tripped over the adjacent chair as she attempted to sit opposite her. "Smooth." Alex thought to herself, she saw the girl smile and smiled herself. Maybe, just maybe, Nicky was in with chance.

For the rest of the shift Alex only saw Nicky when she wanted food, and that was frequently.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Nicky sat down opposite the fair-skinned, dark-haired girl who now appeared to be smirking to herself.

"I'm Nicky, I was sitting with a friend over at the bar and I noticed the guy you were with the other night didn't turn up, did he stand you up?"

The girl looked up at Nicky. "I'm Lorna, are you a stalker?"

Nicky pulled her signature side smile as she laughed at Lorna's question. "No, Lorna, I'm not a stalker but whilst we are on the subject, do you have a last name?"

"Morello." The girl replied. "Lorna Morello."

This was just the beginning of yet another conversation that would span the evening.

-0-0-0-0-0-

As it came to locking up time Alex practically had to push the pair out of the door.

"Come on guys. Let's go, you can rendezvous again tomorrow when the diner opens again."

Nicky ignored Alex's slightly snarky comment as she began walking Lorna down the road.

"Bye!" Alex shouted after the pair who replied with a simultaneous "Bye."

She hopped upon her old faithful who she had now named Betty and performed her signature wheel spin out of the car park.

-0-0-0-0-0-

At the apartment Piper and Diane were at the bottom of their second cup of tea and were planning a third. Their conversation began on a bit of a bum note as Piper told Diane all of the grim details of the night before but they soon moved onto to nicer details like the way Alex was brought up and how much of a big role Alex has played in Elizabeth's life.

By the en of the third cup of tea the pair had spoken about almost every topic under the sun that they could think of.

"I think I'd best be heading home Mrs... I mean Diane, it's past twelve and I've got to get to the other side of town yet." Diane smiled and insisted on paying Piper for an extra hour even though Piper spent most of it crying. Little did Diane know that Piper had a tub at home saved up for Elizabeth's birthday, it had only been one proper day since Piper had started working but she figured that Diane was going to try and over pay her regularly. She had thrown a few coins into a pot and written 'E's Birthday' on it, she planned on putting any money from over payment into the pot so that she could take Elizabeth out for her birthday.

Piper thanked Diane profusely for the support, money, tea and most importantly for listening.

"You really have the most amazing manners kid." Diane praised Piper, something that was foreign to the blonde. "At least your parents went right somewhere along the line." Piper shrugged her shoulders, parents were a sore topic for her right now.

"I guess so." She sighed before putting her shoes and coat on. As she reached down to grab the handle the door flung open narrowly avoiding hitting Piper in the face.

"Careful Alex!" Diane scolded "You nearly hit poor Piper in the face."

Nicky's blatant ignorance and dismissal of Alex the entire evening had put Alex in a less than chipper mood.

"Poor Piper my ass." She snarked as Diane threw her a disapproving look.

"Look Alex, I'm sorry about the diner thing the other day. I didn't mean it like it sounded. I deserved it." Piper grovelled a quick apology to Alex before heading out of the door.

"Mhm" Alex hummed as she shut the door behind Piper.

"What do you have against that girl?" Diane questioned.

"I already told you mum, she was throwing us a pity party with her friend at the diner the other day."

"What was she on about, I deserved it?"

"God mom, is this the Spanish inquisition? I poured coffee into her lap, and yes I realize how terrible that makes me sound, I was having a bad day."

Diane was near enough fuming now, Alex could imagine her face turning bright red and steam coming out of her ears it was that bad.

"She has it a lot worse than you do missy so you sit our ass down on this couch and we are going to have a long discussion about your attitude." As grown up and mature as Alex was sometimes she really could be a bratty teenager and at times like that Diane always sat her down and made her see the error of her ways. She was going to be raised as a proper young lady no matter how long it took.

Alex's mood settled slightly as she took in her mother's tone of voice.

"She was raised with money mom, I bet she went to private schools and had all the designer clothes she wanted, and new bedsheets whenever she wanted."

Diane shot a glare at Alex and she immediately knew she had over-stepped a line.

"I'm sorry mom." she quietly apologized as she hung her head slightly.

"You have no idea what she goes through at home. You may never have had money but you sure as hell had love Alex, that poor girl doesn't seem to have had that courtesy from anyone in her family."

Alex remained quiet for a while as she mulled things over n her head. Diane wore she could almost hear cogs whirring.

"What do you mean, 'what she goes through at home'."

Diane calmed her tone too now to almost a whisper as if telling a secret she wanted nobody else to hear "Didn't she tell you the reason she got that cut on her hand."

Alex shrugged. "No, she had two bloody bandages on it so I changed them for her, cleaned her cut and gave her a fresh bandage."

"She stepped in between her parents when they were fighting, her mother was threatening her father with a broken bottle and she slipped stabbing Piper in the hand."

Alex gasped slightly although she tried to hide it from her mother "That explains the four holes then. Her hand is a mess."

Diane shook her head in dismay, this conversation was clearly going to span a few more hours yet as Diane let Alex know all of the gory details Piper had relinquished unto her. She never told her she couldn't tell anyone. The Vause's never keep secrets.

A/N: I hope this chapter was okay, I accidentally wrote Elizabeth in as having a school uniform in the previous chapter, if you haven't guessed already I am British so it was my mistake. I was really tempted to write one of the girls in as being a stripper in the future chapters but I decided it wouldn't flow quite right so I definitely know what my next Vauseman fanfic will be all about. Leaving a review is always super useful to me, they make my day.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: I do apologise for this chapter as personally I think it is the worst one so far, I'm not too happy with this one but I hope you guys like it nevertheless. I am keeping all of the chapters short and sweet so that I can get them out to you faster, I know everyone appreciates quick updates. (Vausemaniac - I don't work too hard at my job don't worry, give it til september and I will be looking for a new one.)

CHAPTER SEVEN

The rest of the week went without a hitch for Piper. Saturday came around and her hand was still no better, she was tired of telling everyone the same lie over and over again. She had rarely seen her mother over the past few days and was somewhat thankful for it, right now she had only a few choice words to give her mother and most of those were expletives so it was best they remained away from each other. Danny and Cal had believed the tripping and falling on glass story so all was good on the brother front.

As Piper crawled out of bed on Saturday morning, or afternoon as it was, she felt her head pounding and her hand throbbing. Begging that this wouldn't last she headed downstairs to take some painkillers. She wasn't surprised when she found the house empty again, the boys had football practice on Saturday and so when Piper quit ballet at 13 her mother started leaving her in the house to go and support the boys instead.

After a while of admiring the empty house she returned to her bedroom where she began to choose an outfit for Pete's birthday. It would be at Polly's house so she had to choose something that Polly would approve of but also something that wasn't too fancy, it had to be slightly casual. After quite some time of staring into the wardrobe she decided upon Polly's favorite dress that Piper owned, the black and white damask dress with the red trim and bow and black lace petticoat, it wasn't too showy and Piper liked the vintage feel to it. She chose a pair of black flats with a bow on the front to go with the dress, they went well together but Piper couldn't find a jacket to match, she decided that seeing as the party was only a street away she could cope without one.

She jumped in the shower after choosing her outfit and delicately peeled the newest bandage off of her hand, it wasn't too hard as she done it herself with her one good hand so it was a little slack to say the least.

The blonde sucked air through her teeth sharply as the water hit her hand. She had to clean it somehow and she didn't really fancy traveling all the way across town to ask Alex to do it again, not after the Piper realized who Alex was although the thought definitely crossed her mind, more than once she was slightly ashamed to admit.

After Piper stepped out of the shower she noticed her hand was bleeding again. She sighed in exasperation as she went out in search of the first aid box. She couldn't put another bandage on, Polly had already warned her not to wear a bandage on the night because apparently she would look "stupid and tacky". Lucky for Polly there was no more bandages in the first aid kit and Piper couldn't be bothered to go out and buy more so she stuck a large adhesive pad to her hand and hoped that she didn't sweat it off during the party.

She relaxed in her room until it was time to leave, on the way round to the party she looked across the town, she lived on a hill so she could see for miles from the top of her street, nd she wondered what the Vause's were doing tonight. In her mind's eye she imagined the three girls playing monopoly or cluedo or some other board game, sitting and laughing together late into the night. She knew, however, that that was far from the truth, It was ten past nine. Alex would be working, Elizabeth would be asleep in bed and Diane would probably be watching the television or cleaning, wishing the night away until her oldest girl came home safe and she too could curl up into bed.

Piper wasn't far too far from being right.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex actually had a day off for once and so she spent most of it with Elizabeth as Diane was working. The pair went out for a picnic in the park as the weather was lovely and Alex was sick of being stuck indoors.

The pair ran around the large grassy field playing the shark game for almost an hour before the heat got too much and they decided to retire to the blanket in the shade to enjoy their picnic.

"I wish mom didn't work so much, then she could have come with us."

Alex smiled lightly at Elizabeth but it was a sad smile, Alex knew her mom had to work this much just to cover the bills but she also knew how Elizabeth felt as she too wished the same not only when she was younger but now too.

"Me too kid, me too."

The pair remained in a comfortable silence for some time while they ate their sandwiches and then their snacks.

"Did you like Piper?" Elizabeth asked after a while disturbing the silence.

Alex nearly spat her water out at Elizabeth's surprise question. "What do you mean, 'do I like her?'"

Elizabeth shrugged lightly before placing her hands behind her to lean on, keeping her arms straight. "You like pretty girls, Piper is pretty."

Alex smiled at her little sisters comment, she admired the way her mind worked sometimes. "I don't like all pretty girls you know Liz, just some."

"And is Piper one of them?" She pushed.

Alex remained quiet whilst she thought about it, Piper was pretty yes, and she did plan on fucking her, but only for the purpose of screwing over her job as Elizabeth's babysitter. There was something about this girl that felt different, she wasn't entirely sure how but she would work it out in the end. The raven-haired girl smiled at the thought of fucking Piper, and the thought of screwing her over, it wasn't about her family anymore, it was about Alex having some fun and possibly winning a bet with Nicky, one she must remember to place.

Elizabeth was oblivious to everything going on inside Alex's head and took her smile as a form of a yes.

"You like Piper! You like Piper!" she squealed in a typical schoolyard way.

"I don't!" Alex shouted a little louder than she meant to which obviously worried Elizabeth, she knew what happened when Alex was pushed too far and nobody liked it. The second oldest Vause watched as the youngest Vause visibly jumped. "I have Sylvie remember?" Sh questioned lowering her tone.

"Yeah, but you haven't seen her in ages and mom says she isn't allowed in the apartment anymore."

"I know kid but that doesn't mean I don't ..." Alex paused as she swallowed hard. "...love her."

"But you showed off in front of Piper." Elizabeth smirked lightly sporting the signature Vause smile.

"I show off in front of everyone Liz, haven't you ever noticed?" Alex repeated Elizabeth's earlier movements as she placed her hands behind her back to prop herself up and stretched out her legs.

"Mhm, but with her it was different, you showed her your first aid skills."

Alex laughed internally as she thought of Elizabeth's innocent comment as a sort of euphemism or double entendre.

"I was just showing off kid don't worry, I won't steal your precious Piper from you."

"Mhm." Came Elizabeth's reply but it was said in a knowing 'we'll see about that' sort of way, living with two older women had it's advantages for Elizabeth and one of those was that she learned sass and sarcasm very young and has been using it ever since.

Alex simply rolled her eyes as she sat up properly, unsure of whether Elizabeth had see the eye roll or not she let out a small tut. The young brunette simply smiled.

"Come on kid, let's pack up this picnic and head home, mum will be home soon and I have got to pick an outfit yet if you want to help me?"

Elizabeth was rarely let into Alex's bedroom so she seized every opportunity. "Can I play with the toy again?" She asked, hopeful for a yes.

"I guess so but only if you are careful!" She warned. She was incredibly over protective of her one and only toy, her favorite childhood memory.

-0-0-0-0-0-

As the two Vause's returned home Diane was already sitting on the sofa.

"I was wondering where you pair were, Alex you weren't answering your phone, Nicky has been knocking asking for you, she says she will pick you up at 9."

"I didn't take my phone with me, it was on charge." Alex looked down at her watch and then back up at the clock on the wall. "Shit, my watch must of stopped.

"Language!" Both the youngest and oldest Vause scolded in unison which set the whole family off laughing. After composing themselves Alex and Elizabeth disappeared into her room to choose an outfit.

"The black skinny's or the black dress?" She questioned holding them both up for Liz to see as she sat on the bed playing with Alex's prize possession, her one and only toy, her teddy bear Holly who was white all over apart from a little embroidered holly hock on her left foot. It was the one and only gift Alex received one Christmas when they were broke, she had next to no presents that year but if you ask Alex she would always tell you that that was her favorite Christmas by miles. She spent her entire day in the kitchen cooking with Diane, they cooked a makeshift Christmas dinner with some of the things from the freezer an some from the cupboard. In the end the dinner consisted of peas, sweetcorn, pasta and steak pies. Together they managed to throw enough ingredients into a bowl to make something that resembled a cake. Alex didn't care that there was no money or presents she just cared that her mother was in the house for an entire day and they spent the entire day laughing, they were happy and that was all that she cared about.

Seeing the joy that Holly brought to Elizabeth too just reinforced the fact that you don't need money if you've got love.

"The skinnies, the dress is too formal" Elizabeth pointed to the garment Alex was holding in her right hand.

"Well then now I need you to choose a top." Alex threw the jeans onto the bed and placed the drew back into the wardrobe before turning to idly fumble through the drawers in an attempt to find a t-shirt selection.

Before she could even pull one top out of her drawers Elizabeth spoke. "Wear your Guns 'n' Roses top, the black one with the skull face in the back, it's pretty, the girls will like that."

Alex laughed. "Thanks kid."

"Oh, and wear your leather jacket." When Alex threw Elizabeth a puzzled look she decided to elaborate. "The one with the tartan elbow patches that mom bought you for Christmas, and then you can wear your black Doc Marten's with it."

Alex smiled so wide it touched her eyes and Elizabeth returned the wide smile. "You should be a personal stylist kid, you are good."

The raven haired girl glanced quickly at the mirror before deciding that she would most definitely have to take a shower.

"Come on now kid, out."

"Awwwwww." Elizabeth sighed as she jumped off of the end of the bed and headed towards the pillows to place Holly back where she usually sat.

"Why don't you look after her tonight for me, she'll be lonely in here all on her own, I'm sleeping over at Nicky's."

Elizabeth squealed in delight and dashed into the living room to show her mom what Alex had entrusted her with.

Alex stood in the doorway to the hallway, which all of the bedrooms ran off of, and looked over at Diane and Liz on the sofa. Diane's smile touched her eyes as she turned to Alex.

"Are you sure Alex?" Diane questioned knowing that Alex would probably go mad if anything happened to that bear.

Alex nodded before disappearing down the hallway to the bathroom.

"You'll have to be very careful with her, Alex loves her very much." Diane warned.

"Will you tell me the Christmas story again?" Elizabeth asked clutching Holly closely to her chest.

Diane sat up a little straighter and began. "It was Christmas 2004, and we had no money..."

-0-0-0-0-0-

Before Alex knew it was 9 o'clock and Nicky was non-stop texting her and leaving her missed calls, she was so zoned out listening to her music that she hadn't heard Elizabeth go to bed an she was still sat n her towel when Nicky sent her first text. Liz usually came in and said goodnight before bed and Alex was disappointed to have missed that she made a mental note to apologize to her in the morning but for now she had to get ready. Her hair was bone dry and slightly curled at the ends so all she had to do was throw on her pre-chosen outfit and scramble out of the door.

When she finally got dressed and dashed into the living room she was surprised to find both her mother and her sister curled up together with Holly all fast asleep on the sofa. She threw a blanket over the pair and scribbled a note in her worst handwriting before dashing out of the door. She probably should have woken the pair but she thought they looked so peaceful together on the sofa.

As Alex ran out of the apartment block Nicky peeped her horn loudly and at that moment the raven haired girl ripped the passenger door to the Chevrolet open.

"Shit Vause, again with the heart attack thing dude. You really need to stop doing that!"

Alex laughed as she swung herself into the car.

"Where's this party then?" The raven haired girl questioned as she put on her seat belt.

"Across Town, not far from the diner." The scruffy haired girl replied

"Drive!" She screamed as she pointed forward.

Nicky wheel span the car into action purposefully mimicking Alex's usual wheel spins from the diner car park.

"Show off!" Alex said sarcastically as she smirked.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper arrived at Polly's front door and she could see through the windows that the place was jostling already. She fully considered turning around and walking straight back home. Her head was still pounding, her hand was still throbbing and she really wasn't up for the fuss tonight but she knew Polly would never forgive her if she didn't turn up.

She took a deep breath before stepping into Polly's house, 2483 Darlington Avenue.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Nicky and Alex spent most of the ride singing away to some of their favorite songs that were playing on their favorite radio station. But when a song they both disliked came on the raven haired girl lowered the sound and gave Nicky a preposition.

"You know we always have bets on right?" Alex said raising her pitch and intonation to turn the statement into a question.

"Mhm." Nicky acknowledged, not taking her eyes off of the road.

"Well, I've got us a new one. I bet you I can fuck the new babysitter Piper before you can fuck that girl at the diner, what's her name, Leanna is it?"

"Lorna." Nicky replied, Alex was never very good at names, or faces, or remembering for that matter.

"Sorry, so you in or not?"

"Hell yeah, this will be so easy! What's the wager?"

Alex considered it for a moment. "If I win, I get to drive your car for a whole month and you get Betty, and if you win then... " she took a while considering Nicky's prize, she wasn't stupid enough to let her choose her own "... you never have to pay for a soda at the diner again."

"Deal!" Nicky yelled making Alex jump.

"Shit Nichols, my heart, remember?" The raven haired girl mocked clutching her chest with her hand.

The Chevy squealed to a halt outside of a huge three storey house in a fairly posh neighborhood.

"Gotta oil those breaks!" Nicky mumbled to herself.

"Shit, so this is what the houses round her look like. Nice" she commented as they walked down the front path and looked at the door number.

"2483 Darlington Avenue" Nicky stated as she read the back of her hand.

"Yup, this is it." Alex stated. "How'd we get invited here again?" She asked unsure of how Nicky managed to get her invited as well.

"Friend of a friend." Nicky stated. "I checked if you were allowed to come don't worry, not that thats ever stopped you before." The pair chuckled and then knocked on the door. A half drunk blonde answered the door.

"Come on in to the house of sex, drugs and rock and roll!" The blonde slurred as the pair stepped inside.

"Sounds like my kind of party!" Nicky joked light heartedly.

"And mine!" Alex smiled. "That girl had some serious legs on her, shame I didn't catch the face."

Nicky grabbed Alex's hand. "We can look for pussy later, let's just look for the booze first!"

With that the pair made their way deep into the sea of people occupying every inch of floor space.

A/N: I'm excited to take this story further. I imagine you guys are a bit confused as to when this story is set and so far it's set in roughly mid may I guess, as Elizabeth is still at school and Piper and Alex have left. I'm not entirely sure on the American education system as in the last year of high school in britain you leave school a month or so before everyone else and I googled roughly when the American summer break is. Thanks for all of your reviews, please continue to leave them, I love reading what you think about the story so far and your suggestions are always welcomed with open arms.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Thanks for the latest reviews. 100 follows is amazing! Thank you to all the lovely people who follow and favourite my story, it means a lot to me. I'm sorry to all those who didn't want Larry to be in the story because he is in this chapter but I promise that this is the one and only time we will see him. Thanks I3VauseMan for your reviews I'm glad you enjoy the updates, just to let you know, I do enjoy cooking, I do most of the cooking at home but when you are cooking bacon and sausages from six o'clock in the morning it gets a bit tedious and way too hot in the summer, also the extractor fan is broken which is a pain! Longer review next time though please, I love reading them, they make me smile :). Thanks to Marijnkx for your review too and Vausemaniac- don't worry about the toy thing, I put it in as a purposeful double entendre to see how many people think like me, I aim to make this fic M by the end anway. Keep reviewing and enjoy the chapter.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Piper had entered Polly's house and immediately scouted out the alcohol. Tonight was going to be a long night.

As she approached the mini bar type set up a guy roughly around Pipers age asked her what she wanted.

"I can mix cocktails if you want a cocktail?" The guy seemed too unsure of himself to be working behind a bar, all-be-it a makeshift one, he was awkward around people too, or that might have just been because Piper was looking particularly beautiful tonight with her hair hanging in light blonde curls and her long legs showing.

Piper perked up slightly at the offer of a cocktail. "Can I have a Margarita then?" She asked hopeful that the answer would be a yes.

"Sure but it's a little cold out for a Margarita don't cha think?"

"Yes, but we are inside and it's warm." Piper lifted her palms upwards and shrugged her shoulders.

The guy simply down turned his lips slightly in a sort of 'touche' type facial expression and began throwing things into the cocktail shaker showing off slightly as he threw it around.

"How'd you hurt your hand then?" He asked as he pushed the drink across the table to Piper.

"Fell over onto glass." She stated sounding a little too rehearsed for her own liking. the blonde was glad that people were believing her story but sh just wished she too could believe it instead of having to face the ugly truth.

"That was clever." He stated with sarcasm evident in his voice. "You got a name Margarita girl?"

"Piper, Piper Chapman."

"The name's Larry." He stated holding his hand out for her to shake, she immediately knew that this guy was going to get on her nerves.

She shook Larry's hand, smiled and downed her drink, she was glad that he was left in charge of the mini bar so that he couldn't follow her through the crowd, easy get away.

"I'll have a glass of wine please." She stated, Larry passed her the glass and she got up and walked away.

Life was both shitty and mundane for Piper at the moment, she really needed to do something to mix that up and for now, at least, that mix up was made entirely of alcohol.

She sadly had to return to the bar a couple of times and Larry had hit on her every time. Each time she had just smiled politely and nodded and then walked away, she never replied to him or lead him on in any way obvious to her.

On more than one occasion Piper made another person go the bar for her, Pete went up twice for her and Polly went up three times, mainly for shots, which brought the total drink count up to more than she could count, she was definitely beyond tipsy. Piper usually didn't drink this much but right now she was drinking to forget and she could still remember so quite clearly she hadn't drank enough. She made her way to the bar as Polly and Pete were nowhere to be found and she didn't know anyone else in the house well enough to ask them to go over there for her. As she arrived at the bar Larry's face lit up.

"Hello beautiful lady, what will it be this time, may I suggest a slippery nipple." He commented crudely.

Piper slammed her hands down onto the table that Polly had turned into the bar. "You're not funny Larry, I'll have a red wine." She may have drank a bit too much but she was still aware enough to make herself seem sober in front of Larry, there was a risk that if he thought she was drunk he might take advantage of her and she was not willing to make regretful decisions right now, not with all the shit she already had going on.

She snatched her drink from it's place on the table and flipped Larry the middle finger before disappearing off into the crowd. As she walked past the front door she heard a loud knock and so she opened the door to see f it was people at the front door. It was. She was greeted by a tall girl dressed all in black an a frizzy-haired girl neither of which she could recognize but her eyes were slightly blurry and mentally pre-occupied.

"Come on in to the house of sex, drugs and rock and roll!" She slurred as the pair stepped into the house.

-0-0-0-0-0-

After meeting the overly flirty and more than obnoxious pig that was Larry the pair took their drinks and headed out into the crowd. Both girls had their eye on a girl outside of the party but they were just part of a bet. The pair were looking for someone tonight. Alex had just had a fairly big argument with Sylvie and was looking for a bit of a rebound sex even though the pair hadn't strictly ended the relationship. Nicky was just looking for yet another girl to add to her fuck book but after almost half an hour the pair had had no luck, all of the girls in the house were either already dancing with men or dancing in large groups which put the pair off.

The pair wandered around aimlessly just drinking and talking, finding the evening fairly boring.

"I haven't seen sexy legs since she let us in earlier." Alex said looking around the room for the blonde.

"I saw her about ten minutes ago, she was in the kitchen when we passed through earlier although she was popping pills so if you after her be careful."

Alex nodded knowingly, she couldn't get into any sort of mess at the moment, not whilst she was helping to support her family, she had messed around with drugs when she was younger but she never found on that suited her, she could never be a junkie. Nicky dabbled in drug or two as well but mainly stuck with weed, it was the safest drug she could take without worries of her heart giving in, she was never addicted either but she did enjoy it and still smoked it occasionally at parties such as this one.

"I'm gonna go look for her." Alex spoke closely into Nicky's ear before disappearing through the crowd. Nicky headed out to the back garden where she had seen a group of people smoking earlier and lit up a cigarette before being approached by a girl who offered her a joint, she couldn't say no.

Alex entered the kitchen just as she saw the blonde leaving through the opposing door. Alex went after her walking as quickly as she could through the thick crowd. As she left through the same door that the blonde had just seconds before she glanced over the room, that was one huge advantage to being fairly tall, she could see her over by the mini bar. She approached slowly and stood next her by the table mini bar.

"Hey kid, you got some nice looking legs there, they'd look better wrapped around my neck though."

The blonde snapped her head round to look at the guy that was hitting on her now.

"I don't want..." She was silenced by the realization that the guy she was about to shoot down was in fact a fairly attractive looking tall woman, it took her another few seconds before her alcohol glazed eyes cleared themselves and she realized that it was in fact Alex Vause she was looking at. "Alex?"

"Shit...Piper? You're blonde hot legs?" She questioned shock evident in her voice.

"Erm... I guess so although that's not really a name I go by." Piper was equally as shocked by the situation.

"Fuck, I should have noticed when I walked through the door, but you look... different."

"Different?"

"Yeah different... but in a good way, you look nice."

"Nice?" Piper questioned.

"Erm... yeah pretty I guess."

"I guess? Where's that 'fuck me' confidence you had earlier on disappeared to eh?"

Alex blushed slightly as Piper said 'fuck me' girls didn't usually have this effect on her, it was usually the opposite way around but here she found herself biting her lip gently at the words that rolled out of Piper's composed herself quickly snapping herself out of her bewildered state. "It's right here if you wanna go a few rounds?"

Piper laughed. "When Elizabeth said you liked pretty girls I didn't realize she meant it like this, guess that's why you aren't allowed pretty girls in the apartment anymore then."

Alex blushed a little more deeply. "She told you that!?" How was Elizabeth managing to ruin her chance with a girl even when she was all the way across town asleep, she admired the girls talent.

Piper just laughed again. "Yup, she did, unfortunately for you."

Alex regained composure again "Does this mean it's a no to the sex then?"

Piper couldn't deny that there was something about this girls that she found herself attracted to although she couldn't exactly put her finger on it yet. "I'm afraid it's a no Alex, I'm straight."

Alex sighed slightly and 'feigned' disappointment. "So is spaghetti until you heat it up." Piper watched as the words rolled off of Alex's tongue. "If it's a no to sex then at least say yes to a dance?"

Piper nodded her head. "We can dance."

Larry slid the blonde's drink towards her and Alex grabbed it from in front of her downing t in one swift movement. "No more drinks for this one thanks Barry, she's already had enough to drink I think."

Piper smiled at Alex, she liked that she was taking control and so placed her right hand into Alex's left when presented with it completely ignoring Larry's attempts to correct his name and talk to Piper.

Alex spun around still holding onto Piper's hand and began leading her away from the bar.

Larry was not too happy about being ignored and so grabbed Piper's left hand to get her attention, the blonde was too focused on Alex's hand to notice and only felt Larry's hand holding onto her own when Alex began leading her into the crowd. Larry held onto Piper's hand tightly and attempted to pull her back as she was being lead away, the three reached an impasse when Piper's arms ran out of length and she was pulled between the two.

"OW!" Piper screamed as Larry pressed his fingertips into her palm for better grip.

Alex immediately whipped her head round to apologize. "Sorry is this your bad hand?" Alex grovelled not realizing what was really happening.

When the blonde said that no t wasn't her bad hand Alex's eyes immediately scanned for the other hand which she found in the grip of Larry.

"You fucker!" Alex screamed as she threw a fist in the general direction of Larry, not particularly aiming as she didn't let go of Piper's hand, but somehow managing to land the punch upon his nose which immediately began bleeding, he snapped his hands up to meet his dripping nose which meant Piper's hand was now free.

The raven haired girl grabbed Piper's bad hand by the wrist to examine it. It was clearly bleeding as she could see the white adhesive pad getting more and more saturated by a red liquid.

"Shit." Alex muttered just loud enough for Piper to hear.

"What?"

"You're bleeding." Alex dropped Pipers bad hand and lead her back into the kitchen she had followed her through. It was quieter in there, there was only a few people standing around chatting, mainly the non-drinkers who were enjoying topical conversations over snacks. The raven-haired girl sat Piper on an unoccupied chair and began darting around looking in every cupboard to try and fin the first aid kit.

Piper was now holding her bleeding hand by the wrist. "It's on top of the fridge Al."

Alex was taken by surprise with the shortening of her already shortened name, only her mum did that, but she didn't have time to be thinking about what that meant. "Who the fuck keeps their first aid kit on top of the fridge?" Alex asked as she reached up on her tiptoes and grabbed the green box from its place atop the fridge.

"Polly quite clearly!" Piper retorted.

"Who's Polly?" Alex asked as she slowly peeled off the adhesive pad.

Piper sucked air in through her teeth and closed her eyes as Alex tended to her wound, the pad had not quite been big enough to cover the injury adequately and the pad had stuck to one of the holes in her hand which re-opened when Alex removed it.

"Shit sorry Pipes." Alex apologized as she could see Piper was in pain, she was now bleeding profusely from three of the four holes.

"It's fine it's not your fault Al, and Polly is the girl who lives here by the way, my best friend as it just so happens." Piper reeled off completely ignoring the nickname that Alex had presented her with.

"Maybe you shouldn't have drank so much alcohol, it thins the blood you know?" Alex cleaned the wound with a saline solution as it looked as if it was getting slightly infected.

"I did thank you Doctor Alex." She mocked. "Drinking can just be so cathartic sometimes though."

"I'll drink to that" the raven-haired girl joked as she applied a slightly bigger adhesive pad. "And god knows you need it kid." she stated quieter than her first comment.

Piper heard it though. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, sorry. Mom told me all about how you really got the injury, and you know, you are welcome at our house any time at all, you won't even have to call first. Elizabeth loves having you around." Alex's plan was unfolding nicely, she just hoped that Piper would make an unplanned visit to the house and if she was careful she could use the blonde's weakness against her and get her into bed conveniently at the time a certain Diane Vause would come home from work. This would result in Piper getting fired, Alex getting her kicks an even having an eye witness testimony as proof of her winning the bet with Nicky. It was a flawless plan, or so she thought anyway.

Just as Alex put the box back on top of the fridge, Nicky walked in with a group of people who she had been smoking with outside.

"Hey Vause, we are about to play a game of spin the bottle truth or dare, you and blondie wanna join us?"

The primal part of Alex couldn't resist a game of truth or dare, especially when they played the spin the bottle Nicky's way. Alex looked over at Piper who had also been invited to join ad she had a fairly big grin on her face. "Let's do this!" Piper yelled thrusting her good hand into the air balled up into a fist.

Alex smiled, tonight was turning out to be a fun evening after all.

A/N:I hope you all understand why I let the chapter end where it did. I only really write for about three hours a night and this is when I get each chapter done and uploaded so I have to keep them short, plus I thought that you wonderful people needed a more in depth section of writing when it comes to truth and dare, if I had written it into this chapter it would of been super short and would have lost it's magic. It's my birthday in a few days. I'm aiming for an upload a day minimum but I might not manage it over the next few days as I'm busy meeting up with friends and family so please bear with. I would love to reach a hundred reviews by my birthday but I'm not sure it's achievable as it's such short notice, my bday is Wednesday.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I personally don't think that I have written this chapter to the best of my abilities but hey ho, I was tired, I have been travelling all day. I just hope you still enjoy reading it. Thanks to all those who have reviewed so far, you have set me well on my wa to getting my 100 reviews. ChaseHunt0506- thank you for your kind review, I couldn't help but smile when I read it, I'm glad my updates make you grin. I3Vauseman- thank you for both reviews - thank you very much for leting me know when american summer break as, it always confused me. In britain we call 'I never have...' Never have I ever, which is slightly more fun to say wwhe you are mostly drunk. Thank you for the longer review, it made my day to read it when I woke up this morning. Tedious is definitely a good word to describe my job. I enjoy Mexican food a lot and frequently cook it even though my mum dislikes it as she says it can be too spicy. I also love pasta dishes, i'm a sucker for anything with pasta in it. Thank you very much for the virtual present, you put some thought into that writing I can tell, I can confirm that my smile met my eyes when I read that bit :) Also thanks to Marijnkx thanks for the huge compliment, I'm glad you are enjoying my writing, and I'm nineteen this birthday.

CHAPTER NINE

Nicky loosely instructed everyone to grab a chair or stool or anything to sit on and place it around the island. Nicky's games usually went on for hours so everyone was best sat down.

Nicky disappeared out of the kitchen and then quickly re-appeared through the swing door holding two bottles of apple cactus jacks and one bottle of Heineken with no cap on.

"Would you do me the honors Vause?" Nicky asked as she placed the bottle down onto the black granite surface of the island, she pushed it gently and it sped down the table. Alex placed her hand out and stopped it carefully as it reached her so as not to spill any.

"It would be my pleasure Nick." Alex announced loudly, all eyes were on her now as she downed the bottle of Heineken in one, chugging impressively but somewhat loudly. The crowd seated around the table all cheered loudly as she slammed the bottle down on to the surface a little harder than she intended to.

Piper winced at the noise and Alex felt something sink inside of her. She hated that Piper didn't have a nice family unit like she did but at the same time she felt thrilled by the fact that no one else on the table knew why Piper hated that noise, she was all too familiar with it.

Alex wiped her mouth slowly and purposefully with her jacket sleeve so as to appear sexy to everyone else at the table, she didn't know any of them apart from Nicky and Piper but she had an appearance to maintain and that was what she did.

Alex lay the bottle on it's side in the middle of the table. Nicky seemed to have pulled some plastic shot glasses from the middle of nowhere and was filling each of them up.

"Clockwise or anti-clockwise Nick?" Alex questioned knowing that the rules seemed to change every time they played.

"Anti- Clockwise this time Vause."

Alex simply nodded in acknowledgment as she began to explain the rules. "Anti-Clockwise it is which means that we go from me towards Nicky at roughly six and then it comes round to Piper before coming back to me." Piper was sat right next to Alex at the table on her left.

"Is anyone else fucking roasting?" Nicky interjected, she was meant by a chorus of approving hums from the crowd. "Open those windows Vause."

Alex sighed as she took her leather jacket off that was now gently sticking to her skin, she was nice and cool in the kitchen before Nicky and the crowd of smokers piled in. She slung the jacket over the back of the chair she was sitting on and stomped over to the window, she didn't intend to make as much noise with her shoes as she did but that's what comes with being heavy footed and wearing Doc Martens on tiled floors. It helped her to emphasize her exasperation of Nicky's interruption.

She cracked the windows open and returned herself to her original spot not really paying attention to the fact that Piper was watching her every move.

Nicky placed three shots in front of each of the fourteen people sat at the island. "I'll explain Vause, the rules have changed slightly since we last played."

"How did I know you were going to say that?" She remarked rolling her eyes and tutting at her frizzy-haired friend.

"Anyway," Nicky raised her voice slightly above the noise "Anti-clockwise is the way to go, Alex spins first, then George, then John, then Nat, then Gloria, Tiff, then me, Carrie, Suzie, then Sam, then Joe, then Wanda, Susan and then Blondie and back around."

"The name's Piper." She interjected Nicky just as she was getting into the swing of things just as the frizzy haired girl had done to Alex just minutes before. She had to find a way to repay her for punching Larry. It didn't require half of the bravery that Alex's feat had, especially since she decided to stay in the same house as the guy she had just punched, but it was a start.

Alex noticed what she was trying to do and smiled widely at the blonde girl.

"The person who spins the bottle has to ask the truth or give the dare, if the bottle lands on yourself spin again. You have three shots for a reason, if you don't want to do the dare you have been given or answer the truth you have been asked, you have to take a shot, once all three shots are gone you are out of the game. If you are out of the game and the bottle lands on you the spinner spins again, if you are out of the game and someone takes a shot you have to take a shot with them, the more of a pussy you are the more likely you are to get blind drunk. You can't take more than two dares or two truths in a row. Get it?" Nicky asked unsure of what the answer would be as she reeled off a lot of information in a very short time and half of the crowd were already either half-drunk or high which made the game more fun. She was once again met with an approving chorus of hums.

"Right then Vause, you start."

Alex span the bottle a little too vigorously and it took t a while to slow down, when it did it came to a stop pointing at Nicky.

"Truth or dare?"

"Truth!" Nicky almost yelled.

"Have you ever slept with more than one person in a day?"

Nicky was trying her luck with one of the smokers from earlier, Susan so she didn't want to ruin it all by admitting that she had in fact slept with a few more than just two in the same day. She took a shot.

"Coward." Alex mumbled.

George was next to spin the bottle, and so it proceeded until it was Nicky's turn, the others in the group weren't very good at setting dares or asking truths much to Nicky and Alex's dismay, they were professionals at this game by now so they were playing on another level.

Nicky span the bottle hopeful that it was Alex so she could get her back for the previous question and make her take a shot too, but it slowed down slightly too quickly and landed on Piper.

"Dare." Piper chanted before Nicky even had the chance to ask the question 'truth or dare?'.

"Aren't you an eager beaver blondie?" She questioned. "Alright then... I dare you to do a handstand."

Nicky had noticed the large adhesive pad stuck to Piper's hand when she was twiddling with her blonde curls and too advantage.

"That's not fair Nick, you know she has a bad hand, she can't do a handstand." Alex was suddenly defensive of Piper, or simply of Piper's suffering as Alex told herself.

"She'll just have to take a shot then won't she?" Nicky smirked, her one sided smile showing a glint of menace.

"No, I can do this." Piper replied standing up from her chair and heading towards the nearest wall, she took her shoes off. "Is it okay if I do it against the wall?" she asked Nicky.

"I'm not sure thats wise Pipes." Alex suggested Piper back down from the dare and take the shot instead but the more people objected to it, the more she wanted to do it, so she did.

Piper barely felt the pain due to all of the alcohol that seemed to flowing through her veins and the painkillers she took probably aided that.

The game went on for over an hour until there was just Piper, Alex and Nicky left in the game. Suzie, Susan and Sam were all spectating and the rest of the group had disappeared off after they had drank all three of their shots. Nicky quickly abandoned the having to drink a shot even after you're out of the game rule as some of the people were now beyond drunk and they were running out of cactus jacks.

Nicky tapped out first out of three as she refused to answer Piper's truth. "If you had to choose one person in this room to have sex with tonight who would it be?" Nicky immediately took her shot. She wasn't usually shy and reserved but this seemed to be the angle that she was working to try and get Susan into bed, Susan was timid and fairly reserved so Nicky introverted slightly. The frizzy haired girl was definitely in touch with her primal instincts as she faced every dare and completed them all with varying degrees of success.

Alex turned her chair slightly to face Piper, the pair were now the last two in the game and Alex wasn't entirely sure how Piper was still conscious, she had had far too much to drink and yet here she was waiting to drink some more.

"let's just take it in turns to ask each other questions the shall we?" Alex asked.

"No more dares please." Piper almost begged as she began feeling a little queasy.

"Fine, I'll go first, Piper, how many times a day do you masturbate?"

Piper scrunched her nose at Alex. "I don't masturbate."

Alex lifted one eyebrow in half-surprise. "Your go."

"How many sexual partners have you had?"

Alex paused, looked up at the ceiling in thought and began tapping each of her fingers against the granite as if to count. "Hold the two, carry the one... a fuck load."

Piper wasn't surprised.

"Have you ever slept with a woman."

"No." Alex wasn't surprised at the blonde's response, she didn't expect anything other.

"Have you ever fell asleep during sex."

"Nope." came the reply.

This game had dragged itself on for way too long. Alex pulled out all the stops for her next question.

"How'd you really get that cut on your hand?"

Piper sighed and necked the shot back, it burned the back of her throat mimicking the burn she felt in her eyes as tears threatened, she was drinking to forget yet here she was playing a drinking game and remembering. The blonde very suddenly felt very sick and she dashed out of the kitchen and headed to the upstairs bathroom. Alex watched as she left, eyes trained on her amazing long legs as they pushed themselves into an almost sprint, ears trained to the cheering she could hear from the spectators as she had won the game.

Then it came to Alex, very quickly, she could have offended Piper with that question. She dragged up something that she didn't really want to think about, she could be the reason Piper dashed out of the room. The raven haired girl grabbed her jacket from the back of the chair and dashed out of the kitchen and through the house just as she had done almost two hours ago, she spotted her running upstairs and turning right on the landing and so she did the same. She could hear someone crying from behind a closed door, instead of charging in lie she usually would she knocked gently. If she was the reason that she was crying then she didn't want to upset her anymore by storming into the room, on the other hand there was the risk that it wasn't Piper at all, or that it wasn't crying, Alex shook her head and tapped on the door gently.

"Hey Pipes, it's me Alex, can I come in?"

"I...guess...so." Piper replied between sniffing and crying.

Alex let herself in, somewhat surprised by the enormity of the bathroom, it was roughly the same size as Alex's bedroom at the apartment, which Alex thought was fairly big in it's own right.

She crept up behind Piper who was sitting next to the toilet bowl.

"I crossed a line with that question didn't I?"

Piper nodded "I'm just glad I had a way out of answering it." she replied slightly more composed now.

Just as Alex was about to ask her why she didn't just tell people the truth Piper sat up and threw up violently into the toilet bowl. Alex stepped forward dropping her jacket to the floor she bunched Piper's hair up into a makeshift ponytail with one hand and rubbed circles into her back with the other hand.

After about ten minutes Piper had finally stopped throwing up.

"Don't mix your drinks kid!" Alex mocked, not at all surprised by the throwing up due to the excessive amount of alcohol she had seen Piper consume not even thinking about any that she had consumed before the pair met up at the bar.

"Thanks." Piper retorted.

"For the advice?" Alex quipped, slight confusion evident in her voice.

"No," Piper was shivering now. "For holding my hair." her teeth began chattering. "and the back rubbing thing."

Alex walked over to pick up her jacket from where she had dropped and walked towards Piper before slumping down next to her leaning against the wall.

"Here kid, put this on." Alex draped the jacket over Piper's shoulders and Piper pulled on the lapels slightly pulling it on to war her body. "Let's get you home kid, where do you live?"

Pipers teeth slowed their chattering until eventually they stopped altogether although it was evident that Piper was cold as she had goosebumps all over. "I live in the next street over, I can get there on my own don't worry."

"Nonsense." Alex shook her head as Piper dragged herself to her feet still holding onto the lapels of Alex's jacket.

The blonde wobbled slightly as her legs were commanded to stand and then when she was stood up as straight as she could get she swayed slightly. "I don't need a babysitter Alex, I can do this, I'm fine."

"Oh, there's the irony." Alex mocked as the pair exited the bathroom. The raven haired girl insisted on holding on tightly to pipers left elbow especially as the pair walked down the stairs. " You are less than fine Piper, I'm going to walk you home, you can direct me, no more arguments."

Piper didn't argue, she was way too tired for that. " I should tell Polly I'm leaving."

"Don't worry about that kid, I'll tell her when I go back in there."

Piper began shivering again as the pair stepped outside and met the cool air.

"Put the jacket on properly Pipes."

The blonde complied and pushed her arms into the sleeves giggling slightly at the realization that her hands didn't come out of the other end, just her fingertips poked out from the black sleeve.

Alex smiled to herself. 'I could win the bet, I could take advantage now.'she thought. The raven-haired girl frowned at herself for even thinking about taking advantage of a drunk woman especially over a bet.

The blonde directed Alex to her house and as they stood outside Alex could hear her parents arguing. She didn't really want to leave Piper at this house with these monsters that called themselves her parents but she didn't have any other choice. Piper wriggled her way out of Alex's fairly firm grip and attempted to shrug the jacket off of her shoulders.

Alex placed her hands on Piper's upper arms "Don't worry about the jacket, bring it back next time you are babysitting or something."

Piper nodded. "You are an amazing person Alex, you know that? And you're pretty too, I bet you didn't know that."

Alex smiled. "You're drunk Piper."

"And you are tall, are we stating the obvious now?"

Alex giggled, she was beginning to appreciate this girl more and more. Before the raven-haired girl could do anything Piper leaned forward and placed a bad attempt at what she assumed was supposed be a kiss, upon her left cheek.

Alex pushed her back slightly still holding onto her upper arms.

"Kiss me." Piper slurred as she attempted to lean forward again.

'Now's the chance' Alex thought, once again mentally kicking herself straight after.

"You are drunk Piper. Now turn yourself around and head into your house, you know, that big fucking place there, that thing you live in." Alex's humor was quite clearly not lost on drunk Piper as she laughed whole heartedly for the first time since the pair had met and what a magical sound it was.

Piper began swaying from side to side as she stumbled towards the door.

"Be careful Pipes." she commented, more as a warning to keep away from her monstrous parents and less so as a warning to be careful on her journey down the path to the front door. "And remember you are always welcome at my place any time of the day." As Piper disappeared through the door Alex heard the arguing grow louder and then silence as Piper shut the door behind her.

The raven hared girl filled her lungs with the cool air that surrounded her as she cleared her thoughts. She couldn't use Piper to win a bet, that girl had more problems than enough without Alex trying to get her kicks in too. 'I'll have to tell Nicky that the bet is off' she thought to herself as she began walking back to Polly's. Just as she left the end of the pathway she heard a female voice of which she assumed belonged to Piper's mother scream "You're drunk." Alex feared for Piper but continued walking anyway. A tear rolled down Alex's face as she heard a loud bang, a similar sound to that of a knee banging against a coffee table but much louder. Alex's walk quickly turned into a sprint, she wasn't entirely sure what to do in this situation as she had no experience so she ran, all the way back to Polly's house where Nicky was waiting out the front.

"I just sent you a text, did you get it?" Nicky asked, slightly baffled that Alex had definitely come from in the house.

"No, sorry, I haven't checked my phone all night." She pulled her phone out of her pocket, deleted the seven missed calls from Sylvie, and read her two text messages, one was the very text that was in question, it read 'Susan left, no pussy tonight, will try my luck with Lorna tomorrow instead, meet me out front in ten, I'll ride you home.'

"Got it." Alex said lifting her phone slightly to signal to Nicky that she had got the text.

She completely ignored her other text from Sylvie that read simply 'BITCH!'.

As Alex crouched her way down and into the car she thought about a way to approach the bet situation.

"Hey, Nick, about the bet." She finally spoke as Nicky too crouched her way into the car.

"Whoa, you fucked her already, nice going Vause."

Alex had to interject. "No, it's not like that, I haven't fucked her and I don't ..."

Nicky interrupted "Don't tell me your going soft on me Vause! Don't tell me you are actually going to let her open your steel cage."

Alex hadn't thought about it that way. "Fuck no, I was going to say let's make this interesting, We have a week to finish the bet, and if at the end of the week no one has won the bet then the cards are off the table." She thought that if she only had a week then she could easily refrain from sleeping with her within that time frame, she wouldn't have to use her at all and she could still remain solid with Nicky. Plus Alex didn't see Nicky getting into Lorna's pants anytime soon, she was still swooning over Christopher the stand up chump.

'This is an easy way out' She thought to herself.

A/N: I hope you liked this chapter even if I didn't. Almost my birthday, let's see if we can get the reviews up to 100, it would be the best present ever. Thank you for reading.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: 102 reviews. Yay! I got my birthday wish, you guys are the best, thank you all for the birthday wishes. As I am posting this update it is 30 minutes into my birthday so happy birthday me! This is a super short update but I hope you guys enjoy, there's a bt more of Piper's family in this chapter but not too much Alex I'm afraid. I wore an Alex Vause type outfit today when I went out with a friend, I wore a low cut blue plaid ttop with black skinnies, black timberland boots and a leather jacket. I also wear glasses too. Thank you guest- if my updates feel like a birthday present to you then happy birthday everyday! I3Vauseman - Yes I figured it was you and not a guest, your review nearly made me cry, bless you. I love reading your reviews as much as you enjoy getting my replies it would appear, I love spicy food but no one else in my house really does so I cook it just for me sometimes! I drink but I'm not a huge drinker, I don't go out to bars to drink though, just drink at home. I also listen to a few of Boyce Avenue's songs, I also appreciate their talent. Have you heard the song 'Mrs. Alex Vause' by Knash, it's pretty good, I've had it on repeat all day! Vausemaniac -your reviews make my heart sing and I sometimes wonder whether I will be able to fit my head through after I have read them! Thank you and keep them coming! Marijnkx - thank you for your review, I will also drink a beer for me! thank you for singing happy birthday to me I don't think it was out of tune at all! Thank you all for reading you wonderful people. Thank you to all those who reviewed my story and helped me reach 102!

CHAPTER TEN

Nicky had forgotten that Alex was staying over at hers. It was lucky that Alex remembered before Nicky turned the car engine on.

"I thought I was staying over at yours?"

"Oh shit Vause, yeah, I forgot, lucky I didn't score any pussy tonight then I guess."

Alex laughed and raised an eyebrow at her.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper walked into the house and gave a sheepish "I'm home." to whoever would answer or would even pay attention. Bill and Carol were arguing again and Piper was beyond sick of it. A voice inside of her told her to walk away after what happened last time but part of her wanted to confront her mother about what had happened earlier on in the week. Now she was drunk the confrontation idea sounded pretty damn good and so she stormed into the kitchen, a slight sway in her step.

"Listen you two, stop arguing, don't you realize that no good comes from it. You are hurting the boys mentally by arguing all the time, they don't need to grow up around this toxic relationship, they'll grow up thinking that this is what love is, we would all rather have you happy and separate than sad and together. And if you don't remember this relationship physically hurt me." She lifted her hand showing the large adhesive pad. "All because you two were arguing!"

The pair were silenced by Piper's outrage for a few seconds. She was breathing heavily trying to calm herself.

"It was your own fault for getting between us." Carol commented, making Piper's blood boil.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Piper raised her voice as she stepped closer to her mother stopping only when the pair were face to face. Bill was shot with fear as Piper squared up to her mother, he could do nothing but watch as his body stayed firmly rooted to the ground.

"You're drunk!" Carol screamed as she could smell the alcohol on her daughters breath, she pushed her back by the shoulders quite forcefully. Piper stepped a few steps back and then stumbled forward to face her mother again. "Don't you dare push me." Piper stated quite calmly.

"Like this?" Carol asked as she repeated her previous motion. Piper once again took a few steps back and this time when she stumbled forward to face her mother again her legs couldn't hold her. Instead of catching her drunk daughter as she fell, Carol stepped out of the way. Piper fell forward and smacked the right side of her face on the island blacking out almost immediately.

Bill finally snapped out of his trance when he heard the bang that Piper's face made when it hit the island.

"You fucking bitch! What did you do that for?" He screamed at Carol.

She simply huffed and walked away presumably to the bedroom.

Bill bent down by his daughter's body, pushed his arms underneath her and then lifted her carefully. He carried her upstairs to her bedroom and tucked her into bed. Tears threatened s he kissed her forehead.

"I'm sorry Piper, I'll make this right I promise." He whispered.

She groaned and turned over in her bed.

Bill breathed a sigh or relief, grabbed the pillow from the opposite side of her double bed and the blanket from the bottom of the bed and walked downstairs. He would sleep on the sofa tonight.

-0-0-0-0-0-

When Alex and Nicky arrived at Nicky's house the pair dashed upstairs racing each other on the staircase as they always did.

Alex beat Nicky to the top of the stairs and, consequently, to the toilet.

"Hurry up Vause, I gotta pee!"

Alex laughed from the bathroom. "You have an en-suite, use that."

The frizzy haired girl yelled 'good point' to Alex and dashed through to her bedroom to the en-suite bathroom. She frequently forgot that she had an en-suite as she had the third floor of the house to herself an so rarely used the smaller bathroom, opting to instead use the 'communal' bathroom that all of the rooms shared. It was bigger and was always cleaned by the maid, Nicky had to clean her room by herself and so the bathroom attached to it didn't get cleaned by the maid either.

The pair re-united in Nicky's sleeping quarters. Alex was used to Nicky's obscenely large bedroom by now so it didn't shock her much anymore but it definitely did the first time, it was almost four times the size of her own.

Alex dived onto the high four poster bed and stared up at the posters stuck on her obscenely high ceiling. She always asked Nicky how she got them there but Nicky always avoided the question. Alex was the only one other than her family that knew of her fear of heights and so she knew that Nicky didn't just climb a ladder and stick them up there and she was too proud to ask anyone else to put them up there for her so Alex was left wondering.

Nicky walked over to her walk-in wardrobe and grabbed some clothes from off of a shelf in there; a pair of shorts and a large t-shirt for Alex and sweatpants and a t-shirt for herself.

"Change into these whore!" Nicky joked as she threw the clothes at Alex.

The raven-haired girl knelt up on the bed and began to remove her band tee followed by her bra, she wasn't shy in front of girls, especially not Nicky.

"What happened to your jacket Vause, you left it in the car?" Nicky asked as she hopped from one foot to the other trying to put her sweatpants on.

"No, gave it to Piper, she was cold."

"Blondie? Are you even gonna get that back? Your mum got you that for Christmas."

"I'll get it back, Piper is the babysitter."

"Oh shit, the baby sitter is the girl from the diner and blondie from earlier."

"Yeah." Alex said calmly as she wriggled on the shorts Nicky had thrown at her.

"Whoa, that's fucked up Vause."

Alex simply nodded and lifted her left eyebrow, the typical Vause look.

"Is that why you disappeared? To fuck her? Did you do it? Did I lose the bet?" Nicky asked the first three questions with excitement in her voice and the last question with a hint of sadness.

"No kid, don't you think if I'd won the bet you would know by now?"

Nicky nodded knowingly. "Then why did you walk her home? Does she live nearby?"

Alex threw a pillow at Nicky who was now sat in the corner of the room on a huge navy blue bean bag. "Fuck off with all the questions Nick."

Nicky held her hands up in mock surrender. "Okay okay. No more questions. Throw me a blanket."

Alex threw Nicky the throw from the bottom of the bed and crawled under the covers.

Nicky threw the covers over herself as she snuggled down into the over sized bean bag. Alex never really asked about where the frizzy haired girl slept or why, she just got used to her strange sleeping habits.

"Night!" Alex shouted as she reached over and switched the bedside lamp off.

Nicky mumbled an inaudible sound and Alex took it as a 'goodnight'.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper woke up fairly early, her head was spinning and her face felt sore but she couldn't fathom why.

She could hear the boys playing football in the back garden, her bedroom was situated in the back of the house and her windows were ajar.

She could also hear her parents shouting downstairs and the washing machine running.

Piper checked her phone, the time was 11:05. She got up and headed to the toilet steadying herself as she stood up. She felt immensely sick but she still had to babysit. She put her headache down to the fact that she had drank way too much last night and due to the fact that she can't remember half of the previous night she thought it was true.

She was wrong. She stepped into the bathroom and looked into the mirror and was horrified to see that half of her face was covered in a horrific bright purple bruise. She couldn't remember what had happened the night before other than her parents arguing again.

The bathroom door as left ajar as she brushed her teeth being super careful with the right side of her face. She could hear her parents arguing and a thought passed through her that perhaps they had been arguing all night long. She went downstairs to grab breakfast to bring back upstairs, Piper planned on staying well away from her mother for the foreseeable future.

As she neared the bottom of the stairs their words finally became audible.

"Piper was right!" Bill shouted.

"What do you mean 'Piper was right'?"

Piper paused for a moment and sat on the stairs listening quietly to their argument.

"This relationship is toxic, it's hurting us, it's hurting Piper, and it's hurting Danny."

"Cal is perfectly happy. What do you say to that eh?"

"Cal doesn't have a fucking clue, he's 8 years old for God's sake."

"Are we really going to rip this family up just because some of us are unhappy, that's no way to treat a relationship. Cal would be devastated."

"Cal would be perfectly fine once he realized that this means he gets two loads of presents at Christmas and birthdays. And we aren't ripping this family apart Carol, you are ripping this family apart."

"I'm ripping this family apart? What about you with your paid for whores and your fancy 'fuck me' dinners?"

"The kids never got hurt by them Carol, they never knew apart from Piper but she's the only one that seems to know what this family is really like. You're drinking is out of control."

"My drinking is fine, you are just making excuses to leave, if you don't love me then just leave! You are the only one ruining this family."

"ME? Are you fucking kidding me Carol, I didn't stab Piper with a bottle did I? I didn't push her and then walk away when she was falling, you are the reason that Piper has a cut hand and bruises on her face. I bet you haven't even seen them yet, have you even thought about checking on her this morning? She could be dead for all you know. You can take the house, I don't want it. I'll find somewhere to live and then I'll be back for the kids, don't you fucking dare lay a finger on Piper while I'm gone. If I find out you've done anything to that girl you will regret your life." His cruel words spoke a thousand truths as he spat them at Carol.

"That's it Bill, threaten my life, I'm sure the kids will love that!" She screamed sarcastically as he stormed out of the room and towards the staircase.

He saw Piper sitting on the fourth step with her feet resting on the third.

"Not dead." she commented as he stopped dead before her.

"You heard?" He questioned. Piper nodded. "I'm sorry hun, this is the way it has to be. I have to leave, you were right."

Piper nodded again. "So mom is the reason I have these bruises on my face?"

Bill nodded. "I'm so sorry honey, I was helpless, I tried..." He stumbled on his words as tears threatened.

"It's okay dad, go, do what you have to, just please come back for me, don't leave me for too long, I'll look after the boys."

"Thank you for understanding Piper, I won't leave you here I promise." His last words resonated in Piper's ears as she pulled on a fake smile, he dashed upstairs to grab some things and then left, he didn't even say goodbye to the boys. It would be too hard on them, they wouldn't understand like Piper did.

A/N: Super short update tonight I do apologise, I was a bit distracted tonight, I just had a new piercing done called an 'industrial staple piercing' in my ear and it's giving me a bit of pain, it's quite a rare piercing and it requires custom jewellery but I think it looks pretty badass!


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Thank you for all of the lovely birthday wishes. I'd like to thank I3Vauseman and samb06 for their inventive reasoning behind Nicky's posters. I3Vauseman - You will be pleased to know that I tuned a few heads in my outfit and I bought some knew heeled ankle boots today to go with my outfit. I look pretty cool in them. I was responsble my enntire birthday don't worry, I diidn't drink at all and I only injured myself once retrieving a powerball for my best friends three year old little sister, the piercing pain is not too bad, I can't sleep on it though and it gives me a bit of ear ache but all in all not too bad. Yes I do have tattoos, I have four, I'm going to get a couple more in a couple of weeks too. Guest- If I ever come to America I ill take you up on your offer of free Mexican food! But I really don't see me being abl to afford anytme soon although I would love to come and meet you all. For my birthday I went to the cinema with my mum, then my nan and my best friend came to visit with her three year old little sister and then me and my mum went clothes/shoe shopping befor picking my dad up from work and then we went to KFC for tea. I had a lovely day.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

As Alex woke up she was surprised to see Nicky curled up at the foot of the bed like an obedient dog. She gently pushed her foot under the sleepy girl and lifted so as to roll Nicky over. The frizzy-haired girl was a little too close to the end of the bed though and rolled over and off waking herself.

"Shit Vause, why?" She questioned as she stood up and dusted herself off.

Alex was too busy laughing to even answer Nicky.

The pair eventually composed themselves and got dressed, Nicky dropped Alex off back at home and promised to meet her at the diner later on.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Bill threw his things into the boot of the Cadillac slammed it down and got inside, he didn't even look back at the house before he drove away.

She finally made her way into the kitchen to get her breakfast and she encountered her mother sitting at the island resting her head in her hands.

Carol snapped her head up to look around when Piper opened the fridge to get the milk.

"Piper, honey, did your dad say goodbye?"

"Mhm." Piper didn't think her mother deserved her words right now. She turned around to pour the milk into the bowl and Carol gasped.

"Piper, what happened to your face?" Carol asked, hoping that Piper wouldn't remember, which she didn't entirely but she was aware of what supposedly went on.

"You tell me!"

"I have no clue Piper, you went to that party last night, maybe you fell over, don't you remember?"

"Bullshit!" Piper yelled, thankful that the washing machine was on and the boys were being rowdy.

"Piper, tone down your language, you are becoming such a problem child recently."

"I know you did it, I know you are the reason for this." She pointed to the purple bruise on the side of her face.

"I don't know what you are talking about Piper."

"Dad told me so don't tell me you don't have a clue."

"Maybe if you weren't drunk then you wouldn't have fallen."

"Fuck you, Carol, Fuck you, why is it always my fault?"

"Because that's the way the world goes Piper, and it's mom to you."

"Mothers don't stab their children in the hands with broken bottles, or push them and then let them fall and smack their face." With that Piper began walking away, she left her cereal behind, she would eat later.

She spent the rest of the afternoon wishing the time away in her bedroom waiting for her bus time to near. She applied some make up loosely over her bruises, they were still noticeable but they didn't look as severe any more.

As soon as the time neared Piper left the house without saying bye, she didn't want to leave the boys behind with her mother but she didn't really have a choice, she couldn't take them with her. She was glad to be out of the house even if it was in the pouring rain at the bus stop.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex arrived home to find Elizabeth having a tea party with Holly on the living room floor.

"I missed you kid." She said as she walked up to her younger sister with open arms. Elizabeth stood and threw herself into Alex's arms. The older Vause picked her up and wrapped her in a tight embrace suddenly realizing she felt the same protectiveness over Piper last night as she did all the time with Elizabeth. She returned the youngest Vause to the floor and walked over to her mother who was preparing sandwiches in the kitchen, presumably for Elizabeth's picnic/ tea party.

"There's my big baby! No hangover this time?"

"No, not this time mom." Alex took a seat on one of the stools at the breakfast bar.

"I'm proud, is Nicky feeling the after effects?"

"No. Not this time, she was fairly well behaved."

"I can hardly believe that!" Diane remarked as she walked over to give the sandwiches to the baby of the family.

"Listen, mom, I heard something last night, it's about Piper."

"Mhm." Diane hummed approvingly as she returned herself to the kitchen and pulled a frying pan out of the oven. "If it's rumors I don't want to hear it, I know you don't like her but me and Elizabeth do so you are going to get used to it."

"No mom it's not rumors, it's a long story."

"I've got time." Diane said turning her back on Alex to rifle through the cupboards. "You can tell me whilst I make pancakes."

"Well it all began when I sort of accidentally hit on Piper at that party last night."

"She was there? You hit on her? What did I tell you Alex!" Diane interjected.

"Yeah, it's a long story, she's straight apparently, but anyway, she was drunk so I walked her home and then whilst I was outside her house I heard someone shout 'You're drunk' and then I heard a bang, like when you bang your knee against the table but way louder."

"Oh dear, I hope she's alright." Diane glanced up at the clock and then back at Alex, " She should be here in a few minutes so we will be able to see then, I'm going to make her some pancakes, do you want some too?"

Alex simply nodded looking at the clock herself, it was almost half past three.

"It's raining, do you think I should grab her a towel?"Alex queried, she felt guilty for all that she had said and done after her mother told her of the blonde's home life.

"That's a good idea honey."

Alex smiled at her mother and hopped off the stool.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper got off of the bus and headed to the Vause's apartment, lucky for Piper it isn't much of a walk, she had her hood up and the rain was hitting her pretty hard in the face, she wasn't best pleased at the situation as the rain was hurting her bruises.

She hadn't even thought about the fact that the rain might wash off her make-up.

She knocked sheepishly at the door, she usually looked forward to babysitting Elizabeth but today she didn't really fancy answering a million questions about her injuries.

"I'll get it" Alex said as she returned from the other room, towel in hand.

"Hi." Piper sheepishly spoke as she stepped through the door and shut it behind herself.

"You're wet." Alex commented. She didn't know where the pair stood after last night's situation. Did Piper remember trying to kiss Alex or not.

"I'm aware." Piper snarked. She really wasn't up for too much conversation.

The blonde immediately apologized "I'm sorry Alex, I didn't mean to snap, I'm a little stressed, it's just that... well never mind." She began taking her shoes off.

"No problem." Alex smiled slightly, the more vulnerable she was the easier it would be for Alex to win the bet, but there was a part of Alex that now felt sorry for the girl. "Hey, I don't want to pry but when I dropped you off at home yesterday I heard shouting and then a bang, was everything okay?"

"Erm.. well.." Piper stumbled on her words as she pulled her hood down.

Alex took a deep breath and handed Piper the towel. "Here."

Alex knew who was behind the bruise on her face but she didn't dare ask about it, not for want of knowing though, more for the fear of knowing. If he thoughts were confirmed then there was nothing to stop her from going and doing something about it. The danger was even more prominent now as she knew where Piper lived.

Piper took the towel and began to dry her face first which pulled all of her make-up off.

Alex took a deep breath in as she fought off a gasp. She was positively fuming now.

"Go and sit with mom at the breakfast bar, she is making pancakes, I'll go get you some sweats."

Alex walked into her room and closed the door behind her, she slumped down onto her bed and fought back angry tears as she began to grind her teeth. After a few minutes she composed herself slightly and stopped wanting to cry. Th raven-hared girl began rifling through her draws to find a pair of sweats that would fit Piper's slim figure, she slammed the draw hard as she moved onto the next one looking for a t-shirt that would go with the gray sweats she had picked out. She chose her a black ramones vest top.

Piper had just sat down at the breakfast bar and Diane had her back to the girl, Alex wasn't sure whether this was intentional or not.

"Here you go Piper, change into these, let me know if you need any socks." Alex placed the clothes in front of Piper on the breakfast bar and then sat down on the stool beside her. "Bathroom is at the end."

"Thanks." Piper quietly answered hanging her head slightly as he walked so as not to show her bruised face. She hadn't realized her make-up had come off and that Alex had already seen the bruises that adorned the right side of her face.

Alex watched as Piper disappeared into the bathroom and then once she was completely out of earshot Alex turned back to her mother. "Did you see Piper's bruises mom? The ones on her face?"

Diane turned to Alex and her eyes were wide open, eyebrows lifted, she nodded slowly. "They are pretty bad."

"I bet you I know who gave them to her as well" Alex squeezed her hands into fists tightly, her skin turning white.

"We don't know that yet honey, calm yourself down."

Alex released her fists realizing how hard she was squeezing them, she looked at her palms and saw the tiny red indents her fingernails had left.

"I should ask her. Maybe she'd tell me then."

Diane shook her head, "If she wants to tell you she will tell you, she is a smart girl and she needs some respect."

Alex nodded knowingly, her mom was so rational and always knew the right things to say.

The pair sat in silence for a few minutes before Diane served the pancakes onto three plates. "Piper's been in there for a while, do you want to go and see if she is okay, I have to leave for work in ten minutes so I am going to go and get changed."

Alex nodded once again and hopped down off of the stool.

"Pass these to your sister." Diane said as she thrust a plate towards Alex.

The raven-haired girl gave the plate to her sister who was still playing picnic, oblivious to pretty much everything as she was so involved with her own game, and then headed to the bathroom to find Piper.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Meanwhile, in the bathroom Piper was getting changed, she bundled up her wet clothes in her arms and went to leave before she decided to tie her hair up. She placed the clothes down on top of the closed toilet seat and looked in the mirror. She gasped as she saw her own reflection, her bright purple bruises were taking up half of her face. She shook her head at herself and then began to cry, scraping her hair back as she did so. She must have been looking at her reflection for a while as she was soon aware of Alex knocking at the door.

"Piper, are you okay, you've been in there a while, mum has to leave for work soon and sh wanted to say goodbye to you before she left."

Piper sniffed heavily, wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and gathered her wet clothes back up into her arms.

"I'm coming, sorry, I got distracted."

The blonde slowly opened the door and stepped outside to Alex who was leaning against the wall.

Alex looked Piper up and down. She looked amazing in Alex's clothes, her sweatpants were a little too long for Piper and they tucked themselves under her feet, her vest seemed very long on Piper and part of her bra could be seen from under her arms. Alex smiled and the blonde smiled back.

"You aren't going to hit on me again are you?" she mocked as the pair began walking back to the breakfast bar.

"You remembered that huh kid?" Alex asked "Thought you might have been too drunk to remember, or even too concussed." She added pointing to the bruise on Piper's face.

Piper covered the right hand side of her face with her hand and sat down on a stool, she didn't say a thing.

"Mom made us some pancakes." She pushed the plate towards Piper.

"Tell her I said thanks."

"Tell her yourself, she'll be back in a minute." Alex mumbled, her mouth full of food, gesturing her fork towards the hallway.

Piper began eating her pancakes humming and moaning approvingly.

Alex's mind wandered as she heard the noises coming from Piper's mouth. "What I wouldn't give to hear those noises in my bedroom." she thought to herself. She bit her lip as she smiled at Piper.

"Alex!" Diane shouted as she exited the bedroom.

Alex's mind snapped back to the here and now.

"You were daydreaming again." Diane threw Alex a knowing look, she knew that look all too well.

Alex was a little too embarrassed to even reply to her mom so she diverted her eyes back to her plate and carried on eating.

Diane came up behind the pair and wrapped an arm round each of them. "I'll see you two girls later." She gave Alex a kiss on the head an then mimicked the motion with Piper.

The blonde froze as Diane's arm wrapped itself around Piper. She wasn't really used to contact at the minute as everytime she seemed to receive it it came in the form of abuse from her mother. She relaxed slightly when Diane kissed her on the head and then released her to go and kiss Elizabeth.

"Be good girls, that means all three of you, Elizabeth be good for Piper, Piper look after my baby well and Alex, watch yourself, and behave okay?" Diane said as she went to leave. "I'll be back around eleven Piper, I'll see you then." With that she shut the door and walked away.

"Why did she do that?" Piper questioned, unsure of what to do with her earlier actions.

"What, tell us all to behave, she always does."

"No." Piper commented, "The other thing, where she kissed me?"

"She always kisses us and seeing as she sees you as part of the family then I guess you got one too, she never did that with the other babysitters though, so you must be something special." Alex stated as she took her plate and placed it in the sink. "Doesn't your mom ever do that to you?" As soon as the words had escaped Alex's lips, she regretted them, she already knew the answer if her mom could stand to let her daughter suffer after stabbing her in the hand with a broken bottle then she sure as hell didn't kiss her on the head before she left.

"Erm.. no not really." Piper replied sheepishly as she mimicked Alex's actions placing her plate in the sink.

Alex was now sat on top of the counter as Piper turned around. "I heard a bang when I was stood outside your house last night, is that how you got your bruises?"

Piper was taken by surprise by Alex's question but she answered nevertheless. "Yeah, I guess."

"I guess?"

"I don't strictly remember, my dad told me what went on."

"Did these goings on, include your mother?" Alex could feel the anger rising inside of her, her voice mirrored this and Piper picked up on it.

"Yeah." The blonde answered, she hung her head slightly and quietened her voice to almost a whisper.

Alex lowered her head too, that was all she needed to know. "I have to get changed for work, I have to leave in about ten minutes." Without waiting for a reply Alex stormed off and slammed her bedroom door.

Piper walked over to where Elizabeth was sitting enjoying her picnic and perched herself on the edge of the sofa.

"That teddy is new." She commented pointing at Holly.

"That is Holly, she's my favorite toy." Elizabeth's smile as she spoke could have lit up an entire room and that it did. Piper beamed in response, it hurt her face to smile though and she quickly went back to a solemn expression.

"Why haven't I met her before now then?" She asked sincerely curious.

"She's Alex's teddy." Elizabeth whispered as if it was a secret that she wasn't supposed to share.

Piper giggled trying to imagine the hard exterior of Alex Vause being melted as she curled up in bed under Star Wars sheets cuddling the white bear.

"She's very pretty." The blonde commented.

"Holly or Alex?" Elizabeth questioned raising an eyebrow in the way that Alex and Diane did, it was definitely a Vause thing, it ran in the family. She was not looking at Piper as she said it though, she was looking behind her at where her big sister was standing.

"Both I guess." Piper laughed a little again.

"Thanks kid." Alex commented making Piper jump.

"Christ Alex, you could've warned me."

Alex laughed, she had calmed down slightly but not much, she was putting on a brave face as she knew how perceptive Liz was when it came to her emotions, if she was sad or angry and she expressed it then Elizabeth would do the same so she hid it the best she could.

The raven-haired girl bent down to kiss Elizabeth on the head and then walked over to Piper an did the same, she saw how pleased yet confused the blonde was when her mother had done the same. She hated seeing this girl sad but so far she had not seen her genuinely smile as far as she could remember.

Piper smiled slightly and threw Alex her attempt at the signature Vause look.

"Keep working on it kid, you'll get it soon enough, then you'll truly be part of the family." Alex mocked as she grabbed her coat of the coat hook.

"I wish." Piper commented, not fully understanding what her words were doing to Alex's anger.

The raven-haired girl slammed the door behind her making Elizabeth jump slightly.

"She's angry about something." Elizabeth commented.

"Is it me?" Piper queried, she knew full well that Elizabeth wouldn't know of anything that had happened last night but Piper worried that it was something to do with that as she couldn't think of anything that she had done today to set Alex off.

"No, she likes you, she could have had an argument with Sylvie, that makes her mad."

"Who's Sylvie?" Piper questioned, she had never heard of this person before and thought that if this person was pivotal to the Vause's then perhaps they should meet.

"Sylvie is Alex's girlfriend, I think, they haven't seen each other in ages and every time she talks to her she gets angry, you don't make her angry and Nicky doesn't make her angry, just Sylvie."

Piper felt something twist inside of her, she couldn't possibly feel jealous could she? Suddenly she felt a rush of dread flow through her and she ran to the bathroom to throw up. As she returned to the living room Elizabeth looked concerned.

"Are you okay Piper?" She asked.

Piper herself was very confused, "I think so kid. Might have a spot of concussion."

"Lie down." Elizabeth commanded pointing to the sofa, "Let's play doctors."

Piper smiled and agreed, but she couldn't fight off a sense of dread that still held tight inside of her.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex was working a late few hours tonight as she wasn't supposed to be in work at all but they were offering overtime at time and a half. She couldn't say no, they needed the money, especially with Elizabeth's birthday coming up. She had to be in at 8 and then leave at 12.

She had purposefully left early to come by Piper's house, the lights were on in almost every room but there didn't seem to be any movement. She knocked on the door loudly, hoping that she had got the right house, after all, she had only been here once, she didn't even know what Piper's parents looked like.

A drunk blonde woman answered the door and immediately Alex had a gut-wrenching feeling that she was at the right house.

"Do you wanna tell me about what happened to Piper's face?" She spat as she stood at the door in her all black leathers.

"And who are you?" Carol replied wobbling slightly before she steadied herself against the door frame.

"I'm Alex, Piper babysits my little sister."

Carol rolled her eyes. "Come in then Alex, I'll tell you exactly what happened."

Alex darted her eyes round the hallway as she entered the kitchen following Carol, the layout was exactly the same as Nicky's house.

The kitchen was huge and had a large island in the middle, a similar to one of that that they were sat around at the party the night prior.

Carol gestured towards a stool and Alex sat down.

"I'm waiting for an explanation." Alex demanded.

"All there is to know is that Piper came home drunk from a party last night and she slipped and fell banging her head on this island."

Alex rolled her eyes. "Bullshit, I know you had something to do with it, she told me all about the hand incident."

"That little bitch is lying, she's a shit stirrer, she just wants to get me into trouble, her lies made my husband leave today and now..." Carol burst into tears as she reached for the empty bottle of wine beside her which Alex assumed wasn't her first.

"And now what?" Alex questioned, tapping her foot against the floor impatiently.

"And now... he's been in a car accident, he's in intensive care." Carol sobbed uncontrollably now.

Alex didn't know whether or not to believe this woman, she seemed to be made of lies but at the same time she seemed genuinely distressed.

"Piper's dad?" Alex questioned.

Carol simply nodded.

"Shit. Does Piper know?"

Carol shook her head.

" . Fuck!" Alex was near enough ripping her own hair out now as she didn't know what else to do.

Piper didn't know that her dad was in intensive care, and Alex came to shout at Piper's mom for being a terrible mother and yet now she was caught up in their families shit, she didn't want this. She wasn't Piper's girlfriend, she didn't have to deal with this.

Alex simply walked away from Carol and out of the door. Poor Piper was all she could think about, her home life was shit enough without all of this happening too.

She got back on her bike and drove home, she wasn't going to be able to concentrate at her job, not when she knew that Piper was stuck babysitting her little sister and had no clue that her dad was in intensive care. It was fucked up.

She couldn't face the fact that Piper's dad was in intensive care an she stll had a bet running against Nicky. It was fucked up.

As she arrived outside the apartment she pulled her phone out to text Nicky.

TO:NICKY  
CHANGE OF PLAN, NO WORK TONIGHT, BETS OFF ALSO, YOU WIN I GUESS.

Alex had never backed down out of a bet before, it was somethig that was very new to her but she felt that it was necessary, their friendship couldn't start out like this.

A/N: I am not mega happy with this chapter as I feel like I could have blown this whole thing out of the water and had the pair go mental over what happened to Piper but I didn't. Don't worry too much as there will be more angst in future chapters and Alex will blow up big style then and Diane will be having words with Carol too. It might be a while before Piper and Alex get together as they are a bit of a back story compared to everything else that was going on. I have a couple of ideas as to what to do with Sylvie but if you have any ideas then please feel free to either PM me or leave me a review, all thoughts, no matter how strange are welcome.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: You guys have all been wonderful thank you, hope this chapter is okay, I thought you all deserved two updates today so I will try my best to give that to you. Here's the first one.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Alex stepped back through the door as Piper was emerging from Elizabeth's bedroom.

"I thought you had to work." Piper remarked somewhat confused by Alex's return.

"Yeah well, long story kid."

Piper sat herself down on the sofa an Alex sat herself next to Piper.

"Is everything okay?"

Alex sighed heavily, "For me yeah, for you, no."

Piper could feel dread slowly creeping up on her again making her stomach turn

"What do you mean Alex?"

"Well I don't strictly have to leave for work until about seven o'clock, I left early to go and see your mom, to give her a piece of my mind."

Piper stood up abruptly. "What the fuck Alex, why? You know how much shit this will drop me in?"

Alex stood and placed her hands upon Piper's shoulders pulling her down to sit on the sofa. "You'll want to be sitting down for this kid."

Piper sat but shrugged Alex's hands off of her shoulders "Don't call me kid."

"I'm sorry Pipes, it's just that your mom said your dad had been in accident and that he was in intensive care, you need to go see him Piper, It sounds bad."

"If I leave then I'll get fired. Did you hear that shit from my mother? Do you really believe that?"

Piper was once again standing, almost ripping her own hair out.

"I don't know Piper, she seemed pretty serious."

"Bullshit Alex, I'm not going home to my mother. If t was really that important then she would have rang me!"

"I just think you should go Alex. Go to work, if you leave now you might just make it."

"Fuck you Piper, you can't just kick me out of my own house."

"Fuck you Alex, your mom has entrusted me with Elizabeth so I'm looking after her, you leave, I will deal with my lying bitch of a mother later, and as for you, don't talk to me. I'm not even sure what went through your stupid head when you decided to go and talk to my mother! Do you even know how much shit I will be in when i get home for this."

"I'm sorry Pipes, I didn't think of it that way."

"Yes because you quite clearly think of no one but yourself, trying to jump in and be a heroine but no, you fucked that up." Piper was shaking her head from side to side in disbelief.

"Piper, please don't build your walls up again, I want to help you."

"Screw you Alex, I don't need your fucking help. I can handle this by myself." Piper was almost screaming now.

For once Alex wasn't the one blowing up, if they were both screaming then that would most definitely wake Elizabeth up.

"See, you can't even bring yourself to say anything to me, leave now Alex."

Alex said nothing as she left the apartment slamming the door behind her.

Piper finally broke down after Alex left, the tight knotting sensation inside of her was almost crippling, she curled up into a small ball on the sofa and cried herself to sleep.

She awoke again after a hour as she heard Elizabeth in the kitchen.

"I'm sorry Piper, I needed a glass of water."

"No problem sweety, I'll get you one now." Piper wiped her red puffy eyes and walked over to the kitchen.

Elizabeth was clutching the white teddy from earlier. "You look sad Piper, when I'm sad, Alex lets me play with Holly." She held the teddy at arms length now for Piper to take.

"Thank you Elizabeth", she didn't dare tell the young girl that she and Alex had fallen out.

"You have to put it in her bedroom after though, you have to do it before she gets home from work." Elizabeth downed the glass of water and then headed back to her bedroom.

Piper returned herself to the sofa and once again cried herself to sleep, she was woken up this time by Diane returning home from work.

Diane seemed immediately concerned for Piper. "Are you okay honey, you look a little rough. Is that Holly?"

Piper nodded and rubbed her eyes as she clung onto Alex's teddy bear. "Yeah Elizabeth gave it to me, she told me I needed it because I looked sad."

Diane frowned slightly as she saw Piper at her most vulnerable, she looked like a child as she was curled up on the sofa with Holly. She threw her bag and jacket onto the coat hook and then sat down on the sofa next to Piper. Piper sat up in response.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Diane asked.

"I'm not entirely sure." The blonde replied honestly. Her family was the poster family for keeping secrets but the reality was that it did them no good.

"Its no good keeping secrets Piper, you have to share them someday."

Piper nodded, "Where do I start?" She wasn't really used to sharing.

"Let's start with that bruise on your face."

"It was last night, I came home drunk, my mum pushed me." Piper began to explain that and everything else seemed to flow freely. "Then Alex came back from work and said she hadn't been and that she had really been to my house to talk to my mom, and now I'm a little worried."

"Alex has a habit of sticking her nose in when it's not wanted, I'll talk to her for you Piper, and remember, you are welcome here anytime. I honestly love having you around."

"Depressives make pretty shit friends though." Piper attempted a laugh but a tear rolled down her face.

Diane pulled her body in tight to hers and after the initial shock she relaxed into the oldest Vause and rested her head on her shoulder. Piper was still holding onto Holly tightly.

"Then Alex told me that my mother had told her that my dad had been in an accident, and that he's in intensive care. I think my mom was lying to Alex to get me to come home but I shouted at Alex when she was just trying to help. Now I feel really guilty."

Diane was immensely surprised at the words that had come out of Piper's mouth. "I think you need to go home and find out whether what your mother said was true."

Piper nodded and pulled away from Diane. "Can I go and put Holly in Alex's room before I leave."

Diane hesitated, she knew how much Alex hated people going into her bedroom but she had asked Elizabeth to do it, what she didn't know won't hurt her. "Sure kid, go ahead, do you know which one it is."

Piper walked away towards the hallway, "First one on the left isn't it?"

Diane nodded. Piper edged slowly into Alex's room not sure what to expect. It was a typical teenage bedroom, decorated in basic black and white with a brown chest of drawers and a brown wardrobe. The wall above the head of her bed was decorated in band posters from Guns 'n' Roses to The Ramones to Led Zeppelin and Kiss. Piper leaned over and placed the Holly on the bed in the middle of the two pillows, she noticed a note pad and pen on the bedside table and decided to leave Alex a note, she didn't stop to read the pages that had already been written on, she just flipped straight to the back and pulled out a blank page.

On it she wrote:

SORRY I FUCKED UP, I SHOULDN'T HAVE YELLED AT YOU LIKE THAT, I HOPE I DIDN'T MAKE THINGS AWKWARD BETWEEN US, I REALLY WANT TO TRY AND BE FRIENDS, EVEN IF IT'S JUST FOR ELIZABETH'S SAKE. ONCE AGAIN I'M SORRY I FUCKED UP, I HOPE YOU CAN FORGIVE ME. I'M AN IDIOT, YOU WERE ONLY TRYING TO HELP. DROP ME A TEXT TO LET ME KNOW WHETHER OR NOT YOU FORGIVE ME, I DON'T BLAME YOU IF YOU DON'T. ONCE AGAIN SORRY. PIPER XXX

She left her number underneath the message and slipped it under Holly, assuming that she would get the message when she crawled into bed.

Piper reluctantly left Alex's room, said goodbye to Diane and headed home, she didn't know whether she wanted the 'intensive care' situation to be true or fake, it meant trouble for her either way.

As she stepped through the door, her mother was waiting for her in the kitchen. "I'm in here Piper, come and take a seat."

The blonde dreaded what was to come. She took a seat on the stool beside her mother.

"I heard about what you said to Alex, the intensive care thing about dad, is it true or were you bullshitting as usual."

"Piper, please, watch the language, it's a little more serious than that, your dad's car was run off of the road earlier on today just outside of the state and apparently it went straight into a nearing canal, the car was retrieved but there was no body. So basically your dad is missing."

The blonde wasn't sure if she was relieved to fine this information out or not. She loved the idea that her dad could still be alive but she hated the fact that her mother lied to Alex.

"That doesn't explain why you lied to Alex." Piper was fighting back tears.

"I lied to Alex because I don't know the girl, she just came in here all guns blazing and it was the only way I could calm her down."

Piper was trembling with everything from fear to anger, she couldn't process anything right now, she needed to sleep. "I'm going to bed mom, I'll talk to you in the morning."

Carol didn't seem as distressed as she should have done, perhaps she was thankful that Bill was out of the way now. "I haven't told the boys yet, it's best not to scare them with the possibilities Piper, secrets are best kept Piper."

"No they aren't." Piper said calmly as she began to climb the stairs, she could see her mother's reasoning behind not telling the boys though.

Piper stayed up for hours just wasting the time away playing on her phone, she hadn't spoken to Polly since last night and she didn't want to either, Polly was a one man Spanish Inquisition on a normal day and she just couldn't face that today. She got up for the third time that night to be sick, she wasn't sure whether it was concussion, or dread that was making her throw up but a part of her knew damn well it was the latter. As she returned to the bedroom she saw that her phone was lit up with a text message, she sighed deeply assuming that it was Polly.

1 NEW MESSAGE - UNKNOWN NUMBER

HEY IT'S ALEX, YOU ARE AN IDIOT BUT ALL IS FORGOTTEN, YOU NEED SOMEBODY TO RANT TO OR AT, SO I WILL BE HERE FOR YOU.

Piper smiled at the text, she considered texting back a mound of apologies but as Diane had once told her, apologising profusely doesn't flatter her.

So she settled for saving her number in her phone and texting her this.

TO: ALEX VAUSE

CAN I CALL YOU I REALLY NEED SOMEONE TO TALK TO RIGHT NOW XXX

She nestled back down under her covers as she waited for the reply.

1 NEW MESSAGE - ALEX VAUSE

SURE KID X

Piper grinned at the little kiss Alex had sent at the end of the text, "Surely this means that she has forgiven me?" Piper thought to herself.

She looked at the time on her phone 1:34. She pressed the green button on the touch screen and waited with baited breath as the phone rang.

"Hey." Came the slightly groggy and yet still sultry voice of Alex Vause.

A/N: Hope this chapter was okay, I will be posting more of Alex's point of view in the next chapter which should hopefully be up by tonight. Thank you all for your continued support and lovely reviews, I will reply to them all properly in tonight's update.


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Thank you for your continued support everyone. Samb066 and I3VauseMan, it's a draw, you both win. I3Vauseman - A power ball is a bouncy ball and I watched Minions at the Cinema, I'm pretty sure my mum enjoyed it more than I did, she was laughing hysterically all the way through. I have heard of Nicholas Sparks I just haven't read any of his work, hope you had fun at the farmers market, I enjoy talking to you too so don't worry if you ramble, it's more for me to read! Laters ;). Thank you BernieWhiskers for reminding me about the jacket, it will come up soon I promise, thank you for the compliments and yes rainy is definitely typical british weather! Vausemaniac, where did you go, I enjoy your reviews! Short update again but hopefully a satisfactory one.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Alex slammed the door behind herself as she left. "You can't help those who don't want to be helped" She thought to herself, if Piper didn't 'need' her help then Alex would somehow make sure she wanted it.

She knew that breaking Piper's walls down was going to be hard, yet somehow Diane managed to do it.

Alex considered not going to work and instead waiting outside Piper's front door or returning to the apartment to sit in silence until Piper let it all out. She had to go to work, they needed the money for Elizabeth's birthday.

She wasn't scared for Elizabeth, she saw that Piper's mood changed in an instant when Elizabeth wanted Piper. She was putting on a brave face just as Alex did sometimes and that killed her just a little bit more inside. She initially hated this Piper girl for pitying her and now it seemed to be the exact opposite, she was feeling guilty for Piper.

As she reached the bottom floor and stepped outside to where she parked her bike she was almost seething, Alex never usually let emotions overbear her and yet here she was, not sure whether to scream or cry or kick something over something that she couldn't control. That's what made it worse for Alex, she wasn't in control and that killed her. She hated not being able to snap her fingers and make everything right for Piper. She vowed from now on to keep her eye on Piper, for Piper's sake, or was it for her own, she wasn't entirely sure.

The raven haired girl took a few deep breaths, climbed onto her bike and angrily kick started it to life. She let tears stream down her face as she made the lengthy journey across town, no-one could see her under the dark visor of her bike helmet. She took her anger out on her bike revving it madly at stops. She probably would of looked like a boy racer if it weren't for the fact that her slim figure, figure hugging leathers and long black hair that spilled out of her helmet gave her true gender away.

Alex hopped off of her bike and made her way into the diner 5 minutes early, she glanced at all of the occupants for the night, a couple of tables were filled with friendly laughing groups, one was filled with a couple and then sat alone in the booth was the crying girl that Nicky was hitting on.

She didn't really want to face Nicky in the mood she was in at the minute, she probably would wind Alex up aggravating her more than she already was which would have probably resulted in one of Alex's signature blow-ups.

On the other hand, the crying girl was probably going to be an aggravator as well so she whipped her phone out as she entered the locker room.

TO: NICKY

HEY WORK'S BACK ON, NOT IN THE BEST MOOD THOUGH, CRYING GIRL IS HERE, COME SORT HER OUT SO I DON'T HAVE TO. OH AND I GUESS I OWE YOU A DRINK.

She barely had time to take her leathers off before Nicky replied.

1 NEW MESSAGE - NICKY

I'LL BE THERE AS SOON AS I CAN, IF SHE TRIES TO LEAVE THEN STOP HER.

Alex laughed at Nicky's text, she appeared to be stalking this girl. Alex wasn't' sure whether she felt sorry for Nicky having to deal with this crying woman or whether she felt sorry for the crying woman for having to possibly let Nicky down.

The raven-haired girl rolled her eyes and tied her pinny around her waist as she made her way through the kitchen to the bar.

Piper's situation may have been out of her hands but she sure as hell wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to help her best friend Nicky.

Alex sauntered across the table, barely able to comprehend what she was about to do. "Hey, crying girl, what's your name? Laura?"

The girl lifted her eyes to meet Alex's and she sniffed loudly. "It's Lorna." Lorna held out her hand for Alex to shake but seeing as Alex had just seen it be removed from it's duty holding a snotty tissue she didn't really feel like shaking it.

"I don't shake, listen Lorna, I don't know who stood you up or why but it's their loss okay, so stop crying about it, if he can't be bothered to show up then he ain't worth thinking about. My friend Nicky, the crazy-haired one that came an sat with you the other day, is going to step through those doors any moment." Alex pointed towards the diner's glass double doors. "You are going to dry those tears and when she does come in you are going to summon her over, talk for a while and she'll make you laugh and forget all about what's happened with this idiot that stood you up."

Lorna sniffed loudly again.

"Oh and stop doing that kid, it's not attractive. I'll bring you a couple of lemonades over when she comes."

With that Alex walked away and back to the bar, she was surprised to see that Lorna did as she was told and stayed put waiting for Nicky, she even summoned her over when she walked in just as Alex had said.

As Nicky began walking over to the booth where Lorna was sat she threw Alex a wink and mouthed thank you. Alex mocked a curtsy and went on with her shift, she only just noticed the pair leave an hour later as they didn't even say goodbye, no surprise there.

The rest of Alex's shift seemed to drag as no-one else came in, the few tables that were originally in the diner when she arrived, filtered out leaving an empty diner for her to mindlessly clean whilst she thought about the events of the night.

"Piper was right." She thought to herself. "I had no business going over there. Piper could be in more trouble." She mentally kicked herself for acting on impulse and not thinking about the consequences first. It wasn't fair on Piper.

Alex made a mental note to apologies to Piper for the things she had said and done, although she was very aware that Piper had also crossed a line, trying to kick Alex out of her own home.

Closing time came around eventually and she locked up before jumping on her bike to make tracks across town which she felt like she had done a million times today.

As she arrived home she was a lot calmer now and had found peace with herself, she wasn't angry at Piper anymore. She wasn't angry at herself now as she had decided that she had acted the way she did because she was being protective. There wasn't anyone else to be angry at.

Dealing with anger this way was a revelation to Alex as she usually just jumped into bed with the person she was angry with and hate-fucked them until she didn't hate them anymore. She couldn't do that with Piper though, things were complicated, or different, she wasn't sure which.

She stepped through the door and was greeted by her mother asleep on the sofa, it was almost quarter to one and Alex was craving a shower. She shook her mother gently to wake her and ushered her off into her bedroom before jumping into the shower.

The raven-haired girl swore she could feel the stress of the day melting off of her as she washed herself under the seering hot jets of the shower head.

She eventually pulled herself out of the shower to go to bed. As she stepped inside of her room for the first time that night she smiled from ear to ear as she saw Holly sat at the head of the head of the bed between the two pillows.

Alex dropped her bundle of clothes to the floor and climbed onto her bed as she held onto her towel.

"It's good to have you back." She laughed as she picked up Holly and squeezed her tightly. It was then that she noticed a note was left from where she had picked Holly up. At first Alex assumed that it was a thank you note that Diane had written from Elizabeth to Alex as she knew the handwriting was way too neat to be Elizabeth's. She already held a wide smile as she picked up the piece of paper and scanned her eyes straight to the sign off.

'PIPER XXX' and then her number. Alex smiled even wider now as she scanned her eyes over the original message.

Alex saved Piper's number in her phone.

TO: PIPES

HEY IT'S ALEX, YOU ARE AN IDIOT BUT ALL IS FORGOTTEN, YOU NEED SOMEBODY TO RANT TO OR AT, SO I WILL BE HERE FOR YOU.

She smiled as she sent the text, she quickly changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed.

1 NEW MESSAGE - PIPES

CAN I CALL YOU I REALLY NEED SOMEONE TO TALK TO RIGHT NOW XXX

Her grin grew wider still a she noticed the three kisses at the end of the text, this girl was going to be the death of Alex whether she liked it or not, and Alex had a feeling that she did in fact like it. She didn't feel as protective over Sylvie as she did this woman and she never sent kisses in texts, not to Sylvie or Nicky or even her mom but here she was about to send Piper Chapman, the fucking babysitter, one.

TO: PIPES

SURE KID X

She relaxed int her pillows and placed her phone next to her as she couldn't hep but close her eyes.

Alex was abruptly stirred from her dozing from by the phone ringing, she was somewhat confused until she noticed the name lit up on her phone.

PIPES

She answered and decided to speak first, Alex was still power hungry though, that was something she wasn't going to let go easily, she needed to get the first word in.

"Hey."

A/N: Another short update as I am at work tmorrow ad so have had to finish up writing quite early tonight to get the sleep that I need! Thank you all for your reviews, they are all very useful to me and I adore reading them they make my day.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Thanks to all for your revies and continued support. I hope you like this chapter, it's a fairly short one but I thought that the phone call deserved it's own chapter. Thanks to VauseSearch and NatOITNB for your wonerful reviews, they keep me motivated. Vausemaniac -3 revews in one go, you really are spoiling me now! Glad to hear from you again oh and just a heads up, we won't be hearing from Piper's dad for a long time but we will be hearing about him. Marijnx - Thanks for your review, as for your questions, my piercing is a bit swollen at the minute as stupid me keeps rolling over onto it in my sleep and making it sore, so no I'm not really sleeping better yet but it will come, I don't mind though because it looks awesome. Yes I have tattoos, four to be exact, one on my left ankle, one on my upper inner left arm (Bicep?) one on my left thigh just above the knee and one on the left side of my ribs. I3VauseMan - time zones do suck, i've never really been able to wrap my head around them fully, what part of the USA are you in? That would help me immensely as I can get a time zone clock on my phone to help me! Loved the dance by the way, it made me laugh. I am still smiling thinking about it :) Big smiles to you Emma. Laters ;)

 **CHAPTER FOURTEEN**

"Hey." Alex spoke in the low sultry tone that she always did with added sexiness from the tired gruff notes in her voice.

"Thanks for answering" Piper seemed very unsure as to where to take the conversation from here, she hadn't really thought past the part where she got to hear Alex's voice.

"Thanks for calling, what's the problem kid?"

"Well aren't you just straight to the point, I called to set the tables straight about what my mother said to you earlier."

Alex hummed agreeingly and raised one eyebrow, Piper swore she could almost hear the signature Vause look through the phone.

"It's just that dad isn't in intensive care at all, he's missing."

"Oh." Alex seemed surprised.

"Yeah, mom lied to you although God knows why she let you in in the first place."

"She was drunk Pipes, we all make mistakes when we are drunk." Alex was slyly hinting at Piper's attempt at drunkenly kissing Alex.

"I'm going to ignore that comment purely because it has some underlying meaning about me being drunk the other night, doesn't it ."

Alex turned to her side and let out a throaty laugh as she pressed the phone between her face and the pillow, letting her arms slump down beside her, she made a pathetic attempt to reach out and grab Holly but she was a little bit too far away.

Piper smiled at Alex's laugh and the pair paused in comfortable silence for a few moments before Alex spoke up.

"So what happened, with your dad going missing? Have you called the police?"

Piper sniffed back a few tears before replying. "Mom called, they said they will be here in the morning, there's nothing that they can do right now because he hasn't been missing more than 24 hours and he isn't a high risk case." She stopped sniffing and let out a muffled cry as she buried her head into the pillow next to her.

Alex sighed heavily, "Pipes, hey, please don't cry, not while I can't be with you."

Piper sniffed loudly causing Alex to wince and pull away from the speaker as the noise crackled through the phone. "I'm sorry Al, it's just that I don't think I can survive without my dad, he is my rock, he's the only salvation I have when things get rough."

Alex fought back her own tears, she couldn't imagine the world of hell that this girl was going through right now and yet she kept her promises and was here every time she was asked without fail to babysit Elizabeth. "This girl's got guts." She thought to herself.

"Hey look Pipes, I survived without a dad, and look how I turned out." She paused for comic effect, laughter was her go to response when anythng shit was going on in her life or even someone elses, however, sadly, it came second only to screaming and shouting and blowing up. "Well I guess what I really mean is Elizabeth survived without a dad and look at her, she is just one bundle of everything happy."

"Yeah, but you and Elizabeth had the love and care of your mother, you survived on that, I don't have that Al."

Alex couldn't argue with that, Piper had her cornered. "You are going to do just fine Piper, you are a strong, beautiful, intellegent, independent individual, you don't need to answer to anyone or anything but yourself. Screw your mother Piper, she just wishes she was you, young and free and talented." Alex sure did know how to give a girl a pick me up when she needed one.

Piper was almost beaming on the other end of the phone, she let out a subtle yet audible laugh as she fought back yet more tears, gurgling as she giggled. "Thank you Alex." She whispered.

"No problem kid. I'm here for you. Always." Alex set herself off in a state of panic. She had a commitment phobia, or so she told herself, she wouldn't even tell her own girlfrend that she loved her and yet here she was telling a girl she barely knew that she would be there for her 'always'. Always was a long time to any person but to Alex it was twice as long.

"Thanks for that Alex, you really know how to cheer a girl up." Alex's face lit up when she heard Piper's response, all feelings of panic released themselves as if Piper's voice just melted them away.

"In more ways than one Pipes." The raven-haired girl couldn't help but throw in a bit of old-fashioned Vause charm.

Piper made another giggle-type noise that sounded closer to a baby's gurgle than it did to a laugh. "I'm going to go to sleep now I think Alex."

"You think?"

"Shut up Alex, you know what I mean."

There was yet again another comfortable pause between the two girls as Piper yawned.

"Hey, Pipes, you looked hot in my leather jacket."

"Shit." Piper yelped, shaken from her sleepy daze. "I forgot to bring it back to you didn't I?"

Alex let out a throaty giggle. "Mhm, and I assume you went home in my sweats as your clothes are still on the radiator in the living room."

"I completely forgot all about my clothes." Piper wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry at this moment in time.

"I'm holding them ransom until you retun my jacket and sweats."

"But I haven't washed your sweats yet." Piper's voice sounded a little bit panicked.

"Don't worry Pipes, you have got enough to deal with without having to worry about washing clothes that you barely wore." Alex meant 'barely wore' in more than one way, firstly Piper had only worn the clothes for a couple of hours and secondly the vest top that Alex had given the blonde to wear barely fit leaving little to the imagination when it came to her taste in bras.

"I'll bring them tomorrow, I promise."

"Like I said kid, no worries."

Yet another short but comfortable pause surrounded the world around them, they were both solely focused upon this conversation between them, no background music, no television, nothing but them.

"Oh, and sorry for trying to kick you out of your own home earlier, that was a little harsh."

"You think?" Alex snarked adding a slight giggle onto the end of her question to lighten the mood slightly. "Well, if you ever get kicked out of your home at least you will be welcome here, we love having you."

Piper was about to say something when her mind registered the 'we' comment and she changed her direction. "We?" She asked slightly dazed.

"Yeah kid, we, as in me, mom and Elizabeth."

Piper didn't know how to respond to that, Alex enjoyed having her around and she had nothing to say for herself. "It's mom, Elizabeth and I actually."

"It's not too late to start hating you again Piper."

"Sorry."

"And stop apologizing, it's not flattering."

"Sorry."

The two paused for a breath before bursting out laughing simultaneously and when the laughter died down Piper yawned again. She now seemed to be back in her relaxed state.

"Goodnight Al."

"Goodnight Pipes."

There was a slightly awkward pause at the end of their conversation where the pair just listened to each other breath, not wanting to put the phone down first in case one said something and they missed it. Alex eventually took a deep breath and put the phone down checking the time before retiring it to its place on her bedside table. 1:59, they had spoken for 25 minutes. The raven-haired girl noticed she had one new text message from Sylvie, she ignored it, turned over onto her back and stared at the ceiling for quite some time. She thought about Piper and what she was going through, she tried to imagine that her mom had gone missing and she was left with her failure of a father, she couldn't even entertain the thought for fear of tears falling. This girl was going to be the death of her, she thought, and if she wasn't then Sylvie sure as hell would be.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper sighed as the phone call came to an end. She plugged the phone in to charge and then rolled over to face the middle of the bed, she wasn't used to having anyone on the other side of the bed as it was always empty but for some reason today the bed seemed particularly empty, as if Alex had been lying there as she spoke to her and then got up and walked away when the phone call ended. The blonde outstretched her left hand to touch the pillow, she stroked it gently and then pulled her hand back. She glanced up at the door as if Alex was going to step back through the door and rejoin her in bed, she didn't. Piper was lying on her right side pressing her bruises into the pillow, they were aching but Piper didn't mind, the pain was a remnder to Piper that she was still alive, living, or actually just merely existing, surviving. Piper was surviving.

A/N: Short chapter because of work and me being all sleepy and stuff but I hope you enjoyed it.


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Thanks to all for your wonderful reviews. BernieWhiskers - you will just have to wait and see on the Sylvie front. MissPHalliwell - Thank you, your review made me smile. I3VauseMan - yep four tattoos, they don't seem as bad ass when you realize what they are of haha, I'm going to see about getting an appointment for tattoo number five today. You say I lack no self confidence but I do haha, I am sometimes very self conscious but I don't like to let it show, it's my main weakness. As for time zones, that's good to know that you go by central time, it makes it much easier for me. I live in a pretty crap part of the UK in a place stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, england, we are known for our pottery and are more commonly known as 'the potteries'. I can't believe my chapter mad you cry when you read it to music, please don't cry M, you'll make me cry! F.Y.I I watched the notebook whilst writing a bit of this chapter and in the end I only ended up writing about five sentences because I was watching the film instead of writing, naughty me. Laters M ;). samb06- don't you worry, Sylvie will be here soon to wreak havoc.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Piper was rudely awoken by her mother ripping back the curtains and letting the light in.

"It's 11 o'clock Piper, wake up, the police are here and they want to talk to you about your dad, the boys think the police are here because someone hit you, hence your bruises, secrets are best kept Piper remember that, now come on get out of bed."

Piper just about let out a low growl as she dragged herself out of bed, she hated Mondays and this was a particularly terrible one for her. She threw on her house coat and descended downstairs, she couldn't care less what she looked like right now.

She was greeted in the kitchen by one male and one female police officer. She felt like she was being scrutinized under the eyes of someone else's parents.

They introduced themselves as Patrick and Marie and were overly chipper considering the situation.

"May we ask you a few questions?" Marie asked.

Piper nodded as Carol placed a hot cup of coffee in front of her and the two officers. She took a precautionary sip just to check that her mother hadn't poisoned hers, she never usually made her a hot drink, or anything for that matter.

"When was the last time you saw your father?"

"Erm... yesterday around 1 o'clock when he left"

"Did he say why he was leaving?"

Piper was getting more and more uncomfortable at the questions that Marie was asking, Patrick just seemed to be sat in silence observing the situation like a silent partner. She was also overly aware that her mother was present in the kitchen and if she said the wrong thing she knew she would have to suffer at the hands of her mother, literally.

"Erm... he and mum had a disagreement, he said he was going to find somewhere else to live."

"Can you remember where he said he was going to go?"

"He didn't say anywhere in particular."

Marie scribbled something roughly onto her notepad before taking a sip of her coffee.

"Did he take anything with him?"

"Yeah, he took a gym bag with him filled with his stuff from the bedroom, clothes I guess."

Marie scribbled something else down.

"Why is that important?" Piper queried unsure of the protocols of talking to police, she was wary to say the least.

"It's just that the car was completely empty except for a few CD's"

Piper frowned, she wasn't sure what they were trying to imply.

"How did you get those bruises..." She looked down at her paper "...Piper?"

The blonde quickly glanced over at her mother who was leaning against the countertop near the sink, coffee cup in hand, Carol widened her eyes and raised one eyebrow.

"I was at a party the other night, I was drunk, I fell over and hit my head."

Marie just nodded, she had noticed the exchange of glances between mother and daughter and was vaguely aware of other circumstances but she didn't say anything about it.

"Thank you Piper, here's my name and number and this is the crime reference number if you need it."

She handed Piper a piece of paper torn from her notebook and stood up.

"We'll show ourselves out don't worry." The pair only addressed Piper and she started to wonder whether they had spoken to Carol at all.

Piper gestured towards the front door with her hand and stood up from the stool, she followed them to the door and shut it behind them.

"Piper!"

The blonde was just about to begin ascending the stairs when Carol shouted her.

"What."

"Thank you."

Piper knew exactly what she was on about, she was thanking her for lying to the police about where her bruises came from. She rolled her eyes and continued up the stairs, she had to be at the Vause's for half past four.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex was never a fan of Mondays, especially recently as her mom had to work early in the morning so it was left to her to get Elizabeth out of bed and to school.

She grunted and slapped aimlessly at the bedside table where she had left her phone last night. 6:30. She rolled over and out of the side of the bed closest to the door, she jumped into the shower and got dressed before she even attempted to wake her sister. Elizabeth was always a bouncing ball of hyperactivity no matter what time of day it was, especially on a weekday as she thoroughly enjoyed school, something that Alex did not.

"Rise and shine sleepy head, half the town is probably dead." It was Alex's signature wake up sentence that told Elizabeth it was her and not her mom.

"Is it school today?" Elizabeth asked as she stretched out her arms.

"Yup, now get up, it's oatmeal for breakfast." Alex stated as she ripped Elizabeth's curtains open and then headed out of the room.

"Strawberry oatmeal?" Elizabeth asked as she swung her feet out from under the covers and stuck her them inside of her slippers.

Alex paused at the doorway. "Is there any other kind kid?"

The youngest Vause smiled widely and followed her sister out of the room like a lost puppy dog. She took a seat by the breakfast bar and watched intently as Alex made oatmeal.

"Were you talking to Sylvie on the phone last night?"

Alex nearly choked on her cup of coffee as Elizabeth spoke.

"No, how did you know I was on the phone?"

"I could hear you laughing when I got up to get a drink."

Alex simply nodded her head knowingly and carried on making oatmeal waiting for the next inevitable question.

"Who were you on the phone to then?"

Alex sighed, she knew it was coming.

"If I said it was Piper would you believe me?" Alex queried as she pushed the bowl in front of Elizabeth.

"I believe you, because you like Piper, you like Piper." Elizabeth spoke in that sing songy voice shuffling from left to right on the stool as she mixed the strawberry sauce and strawberry pieces into her oatmeal with her spoon.

Alex rolled her eyes at Elizabeth's childish mocking.

"She wasn't feeling happy so I made her feel happy again that was all." Alex mulled the words over in her head as she spoke them, she felt a twinge of something inside of her, it was happiness bundled up with something else, something she couldn't quite put her finger on.

Elizabeth was wolfing her oatmeal down and spoke with a full mouth "you are a nice person Alex, you make me happy too."

Alex could barely hear what Elizabeth was saying but she understood well enough and couldn't hep but let a huge smile decorate her face.

"Alright kid, you make me happy too, now go and get dressed for school so we aren't late because that will make me sad."

Elizabeth pushed her empty bowl away from herself a little too vigorously and almost knocked it off the other side of the breakfast bar before hopping off of the stool and running into her bedroom.

Alex washed the dishes as Elizabeth got dressed and she ran the conversation of last night through her head again and again. Piper Chapman was the name that stayed on her mind as she walked Elizabeth to school and as she cleaned the house and went food shopping and then eventually picked Elizabeth up from school.

"Hey kid, me again, mum is at work 'til four so she couldn't pick you up today, wanna go get ice cream again?"

Elizabeth pumped her fists into the air. "Yeah ice cream, you are so cool Alex."

Alex once again let a huge smile decorate her face for the second time that day. It would appear that the people that could make her smile the most had the last name Vause, or in rare occasions, a Chapman.

The pair grabbed ice cream from the parlor and then headed back to the apartment, these ice cream parlor visits seemed to be a weekly occurrence or the two girls now and Alex was beyond thankful for it, she adored spending time with her sister as much as she didn't want to admit it.

Alex dropped Elizabeth back off at the apartment, got changed and headed straight out for work, barely stopping to say hi and goodbye to her mother. Diane didn't want Elizabeth to be passed from pillar to post, babysitter to child minder and home again, she despised the idea. She was beyond happy that she was now looked after by three people who cared for her, Diane would even go as far as to say that Piper loved Elizabeth, she cared for her as Alex did, just like a sister.

Right on time Piper arrived and Diane said her goodbyes before rushing though the door.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex arrived at work and wasn't surprised to see Lorna sitting at her usual table tapping her foot impatiently as she waited for someone. She rolled her eyes and disappeared into the locker room to take off her leathers, she was about to tell Lorna once again what a idiot she was.

Alex tied her pink pinny around her waist, she hated the color but the boss insisted on the color, he was a stereotypical bigot. She made her way over to table number three as she and Nicky called it and approached the dark haired girl, notepad and pen in hand.

"Are you seriously here to wait for that idiot again? He has stood you up once and he will do it again, don't you understand that?"

The dark haired girl furrowed her brow at Alex. "I'm here to meet Nicky, she should be here any minute."

Alex felt lifted in a strange way as if this girl wasn't going to be a constant issue for her anymore. "Okay, if Nicky stands you up I will personally wring her neck for you I promise." With that she walked away without taking a order.

Alex's boss was watching her intently as she walked over to the table and back again.

"Alex a word please." He gestured her towards him with a curl of his finger and Alex felt sick to the stomach, she remembered what happened the last time that he asked for a word.

He walked into his office type room that he had created for himself at the back of the diner next to the locker room, Alex followed, he shut the door behind them both, turning the lock before walking to stand behind Alex who was now seated facing his desk. He bent down to whisper in her ear.

"You wont say anything about this will you?" He asked as he reached his hand underneath her crop top.

"You know what happened last time you tried this, you lost your bike remember."

"Yeah but this time you aren't going to say anything are you? Because I saw you and your little sister earlier and I know where you live, you wouldn't want anything to happen to her would you?"

Alex was nearly crying at this point, George's hands were kneading her breasts lightly over top of her bra. She couldn't stand her sister being brought into this.

"Fuck off." she screamed and stood up ripping his hands from underneath her crop top. She headed towards the door and tried to unlock it, her eyes were bleary with tears and she could barely see and she was damned if she was going to actually cry.

George came up behind Alex and grabbed her hair spinning her around, he pressed his lips to hers and she cried, tears streamed down her face. He begged for entrance with his tongue but she clamped her jaw shut.

He leaned into her pressing her against the wall. She cried silently as he moved away from her lips and down onto her neck pressing kisses into every inch of her skin. She fumbled behind her in an attempt to unlock the door but George still had his hand tangled in her hair.

He released her hair and leaned one arm against the wall and used the other hand to snake round to her buttock and gave it a sharp squeeze.

Alex just managed to unlock the door and escape before he managed to get any further. He didn't follow her, he knew damn well that she wouldn't say anything, not after he had threatened her family.

Alex wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and proceeded out of the diner where she leaned against the wall and threw her head back almost banging it against the bricks. She felt, hot, cold and sick all the same time.

She needed this job more than she could even express and with Elizabeth's birthday coming up she couldn't quit, not now.

She walked back into the diner after ten minutes to finish her shift, she didn't fight her entire life just to quit now, she was still living, well surviving. Alex was surviving. As she stepped through the double doors she saw Nicky and Lorna sitting at the table laughing together and she forced a smile even though no one else was around to see it. Her mind briefly flitted to her girlfriend and she made a mental note to text her later on.

Alex wanted the kind of relationship that Nicky and Lorna seemed to be creating, one that could waste the hours away without thinking of anything but the here and now. She made a second mental note to invite Piper round to hang out, now that Nicky seemed to be otherwise occupied she needed a new drinking buddy and with the blonde's current situation alcohol might be a good escape for her.

Alex stood behind the bar for the rest of her shift, the diner was quiet and Nicky and Lorna left quite early, Nicky didn't even say goodbye. When her shift ended Alex made her way out of the diner and as she went to jump aboard her motorbike she paused then kicked it. It reminded her of her sleaze ball boss and this was the next best thing to kicking him in the balls considering she didn't want to get fired. She didn't do her usual showy wheel spin as she left the car park and she kept within the legal speed limit all the way home, it was like her sparkle had been dulled and she didn't know how to make it shine again.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper waved at Diane as she dashed out of the door. She approached Elizabeth and asked her about what to do for tea.

"What do you want to eat for tea Liz?" The blonde questioned.

Elizabeth threw her the signature Vause look, "Only Alex calls me Liz."

"Oh sorry kid, I didn't mean to steal it from her." Piper giggled. "I won't call you that again if you don't want me to?"

"Alex calls me that too."

"I guess I can't win, can I?"

Elizabeth shrugged her shoulders. "You can call me anything you want Pipes, I don't mind."

Piper laughed once again. "Okay kid, but don't call me Pipes okay, it's Piper to you." Pipes was a nickname reserved for Polly, Pete and very recently Alex.

"Okay." Elizabeth mused as she dashed into the kitchen delighting at the freezer full of frozen pasties.

Alex had been shopping earlier on in the day and she knew that frozen pasties were Elizabeth's favorite.

"Frozen pasties!" Elizabeth squealed in delight hugging the pack of two tightly to her chest.

"Alright then kid, I'll cook you these, you go jump in the bath."

Diane had left Piper strict instructions to make sure that Elizabeth was clean even if she had to wrestle her into the bathtub and shower her down.

The blonde was expecting a fight but no such business went down, she was always good for Piper and the added incentive of pasties after she had returned from the bath seemed to help immensely.

Piper put the two pasties onto a tray to place in the oven and threw the box into the bin, she paused for a moment before pulling the box out of the bin and reading the instructions before putting them in the oven at the right temperature. She always cooked frozen pasties for Cal but for the life of her she could never remember the temperature or the timing.

Whilst Liz was in the bath and the pasties were in the oven Piper walked over to the coat hook where she had placed a plastic bag on the floor below it. She took out the three items and walked over to the hallway carefully creeping into Alex's room. She laughed to herself as she heard Elizabeth re-creating her own screamo version of ACDC's Back in Black.

The blonde did the same as she did last time she was in this room, she reached over to the notepad on the side of the bed and instead of skipping to the next available page to rip it out, she paused a few pages from the end and began to read.

"And her eyes shone like the water's reflection, calming and soothing. She smiled at me with fear in her eyes and lied to me. The words fell out of her mouth like shards of broken glass, cutting her as she spoke and my soul cried for her pain. Her blue eyes shot with something else now, ripples in the surface of the water giving away the storm that was brewing underneath."

Piper stopped there in awe of Alex's talent for writing and also in awe of the similarities that the description bared to herself. She didn't carry on reading for fear of selling herself into the whole situation, she just skipped to the next available empty page and ripped it out grabbing the pen with barely any ink in and scribbling Alex a note. She left the note on top of the sweats and leather jacket that she had neatly folded and placed under Holly.

As she stepped out of Alex's room quietly closing the door behind her she tapped gently on the bathroom door, don't be too long Elizabeth, the pastes are nearly done and with that she could hear the slipping of feet against the bath and water splashing as Elizabeth scrambled to get out of the bath.

The blonde shook her head and returned to the kitchen where she took the pasties out of the oven and placed them on a plate.

"Dinner is served!" Piper shouted and Elizabeth came barreling out of the bathroom in a pair of quite clearly hand-me-down My little pony pajamas. The blonde didn't peg Alex as a My little pony fan but she made a mental note to mock her about it later on.

"Will you plait my hair for me later please Piper, I like it when it dries at night and then when you take it down in the morning it goes all wavy. Sometimes mom does it for me and sometimes Alex does it for me although mom is better at it."

Piper thought as much, she didn't really see Alex as the kind of girl to be plaiting her friends hair at a sleepover.

"Sure I will kid, eat your tea first though."

Elizabeth wolfed the pasties down just as she had done with the oatmeal this morning. If you didn't know the family you might think that Elizabeth was never fed.

The youngest Vause dropped her knife and fork onto her empty plate and hastily chewed the last mouthful of pasty before running into her bedroom returning shortly with a hairbrush and a handful of bobbles.

"Go sit on the sofa kid, I'll be right over." Piper laughed again, she loved being around this girl and she was even starting to think of this girl as if she was her own little sister. She would happily babysit this girl for free but she knew damn well that this family were to proud to allow that to happen so she just stashed the money away putting it all into Elizabeth's birthday pot. After all, she didn't need the money, her family was vastly wealthy and thought that they could buy Piper's happiness and silence with their expensive gifts and wads of money. She chose to babysit purely for the fact that she wanted to do something to make herself feel proud and needed and just to get her out of the house.

Piper ditched the plate in the sink and walked over to Elizabeth taking her wet long brown hair in one hand and the brush in another, bobbles around her wrist, she began plaiting. By the time that she had finished it was bedtime, Elizabeth had zoned out watching yet another shark documentary, she didn't say a word the entire time and she didn't even complain when Piper pulled her hair just a little too hard like Polly did. The blonde had gone for more of an elaborate design plaiting with eight strands of hair instead of the usual three. Piper picked Elizabeth up to look into the mirror and admire her own hair, she pulled the plait forward and over her shoulder so that she could see it.

"Wow, you plait even better than mommy does." Elizabeth gasped "I look like a princess."

"You are a princess." Piper said as she placed her back down onto the floor. "Now come on kid, let's get you to bed."

"Princess story!" Elizabeth yelled as she was ushered into her bedroom.

Piper emerged from Elizabeth's bedroom no more than 15 minutes later and resumed her usual routine of falling asleep on the couch watching some shitty TV program whilst she waited for Diane to return home.

Several hours later Diane returned home far too chipper for Piper's liking as she was abruptly woken by the door flinging open and Diane was humming some sort of tune.

"Pay rise!" She said in a sing songy voice.

"Eh?" Piper rubbed her eyes, today had been a long day for her.

"I got a pay rise today." Diane had abandoned the sing songy voice now for a much more subtle and calming tone.

"Nice, looks like you will be rolling in it soon enough." Piper joked trying to sound awake.

"I wish kid, can't wait for Alex to get home so I can tell her the good news."

Piper smiled. "I best get going now Diane, goodnight." And with that Piper left without taking any payment, Diane was too distracted by putting the beers away in the fridge and doing what the blonde could only assume was Diane's happy dance to even notice that Piper hadn't been payed.

"Goodbye sweetheart." Piper smiled so wide she was sure she felt it touch her eyes, a part of her even felt her heart smile too.

-0-0-0-0-0-

As Alex returned home she was greeted by an ice cold beer on the coffee table and her mom sitting on the sofa grinning wildly, she knew her mom had god news but she just wished that she could share some of her mom's happiness with her instead of running the night's events over and over again in hr head playing out different scenarios.

"I got a pay rise Al, just in time for Elizabeth's birthday, isn't that great?"

Alex nodded but couldn't help herself as a tear rolled down her cheek, she bit her lip hard to stop herself from losing it completely. She slumped down onto the sofa next to her mother and spoke softly and quietly, barely an audible whisper. "That's great news mom."

Diane wasn't buying it.

Alex tucked one knee under her chin and aimlessly poked the carpet with the bumper of her converse with the other. She stared at the floor as she spoke.

Diane lifted Alex's chin with her hand gently forcing Alex to make eye contact. "What's up kid?"

It was then that Alex lost it all, she bawled as her mother pulled her closer and patiently waited it out until Alex naturally silenced herself.

"Just a shit day at work I guess, boss was being a prick."

"He didn't try anything again did he?"

"No, no he didn't he was just being a bitch and it's that time of month again so I guess I'm just over reacting." For the first time in her life Alex had lied to her mom, but she didn't regret it, it was for Elizabeth's sake and no other reason.

"Alright then honey." Diane nodded as she pulled away from Alex. Grabbing her bottle of beer from the coffee table she lifted it above her head and Alex mirrored the action.

"Cheers." They said simultaneously as they clinked the glass bottles together.

Alex downed her bottle in one and then walked over to throw it in the bin before heading to bed.

"I'm going to go to bed mom, its been a bit of a shit day for me, I'm sorry I couldn't be more supportive tonight."

"Don't worry about it sweety." Diane spoke as she too headed to bed. "I love you."

"Love you too mom." Alex murmured before she stepped into her room and closed the door. She immediately spotted the clothes pile on the bed and smiled to herself slightly, this time it wasn't forced.

She grabbed the leather jacket from the top of the pile pulling it gently from underneath Holly and went to hang it in the wardrobe before she realized a note had fallen. She hung the jacket and then bent down to pick the note up. It read:

HEY ALEX, HERE ARE YOUR CLOTHES BACK JUST AS I PROMISED, NOT WASHED THOUGH. MISSED YOU TONIGHT, WISH I COULD HAVE SEEN YOU, DROP ME A TEXT WHEN YOU GET THIS IF YOU WANT.

Alex just smiled at the note before crumpling it up and throwing it into the bin next to her bed. There was no sign off but she knew exactly who it was from.

The words 'missed you' stood out to Alex as she vaguely remembered her girlfriend whom she was supposed to text. She pulled the phone from her pocket to see one missed call from Sylvie, she sent her a text back.

TO: SYLVIE

DON'T REALLY FEEL LIKE TALKING TONIGHT BABE, HAD A SHIT DAY AT WORK, TEXT ME IF YOU WANT.

Then she opened up the text conversation she had began with Piper last night and sent her a text.

TO: PIPES

SO SORRY I MISSED YOU TOO, GOT YOUR NOTE, CALL ME IN TEN MINUTES IF YOU WANT. X

She rarely sent kisses to Sylvie and yet here she as sending kisses to Piper fucking Chapman, a girl she barely knew. Alex sighed in exasperation as she felt an oncoming mental onslaught of guilt and all sorts of other emotions headed her way. It felt wrong but at the same time it felt right.

1 NEW MESSAGE - PIPES

WILL DO. XX

Alex smiled to herself as Piper had retaliated with two kisses. "Well played Chapman, well played." She thought to herself.

Before she could even think about what she was doing, she found herself facing the bathroom mirror wearing the just returned sweats that Piper had left. She took comfort in the fact that the comfy clothes smelled like Piper, just as Piper had found comfort in them the preceding night as they smelled of Alex.

She kept her phone in hand as she went about her nightly routine. Just as she curled up into bed her phone rang.

"Hey Pipes."

"Hey Al."

A/N: Hope you liked this chapter. I personally am looking forward to writing chapter seventeen and you will all see why when it has been written and posted. Please note the next week or so from here on out is manic for me, it's the first anniversary of my grandad's death this coming week, I'm babysitting two days a week, working two days a week and I have pack holiday to attend to with my girl guides next weekend, it's all go for me from here on in for a while so I would greatly appreciate your understanding if the updates grow to be a little baron. I will not abandon this story don't worry.


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: Thank you to all who left reviews (BernieWhiskers, I3VauseMan, Vausemaniac, moanzs, an all the guests. Thanks so much for your ongoing support and understanding, it means a lot to me. (There is an easter egg somewhere in this chapter for you I3VauseMan, I challenge you to find it :) ) Sorry it took so long to write, it's a longer one this time though. I hope you enjoy it, sorry for any spelling mistakes and sorry if it's a bit crap at the end, i stayed up till early in the morning to finish.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

"I missed you today."

"I was at work, I'm sorry Pipes." Alex was already fighting back tears at the mention of work.

"No worries Al, did you get the jacket and sweats I left you?"

Alex nodded before realizing she had to speak. "Yeah thanks."

Piper noticed immediately that Alex didn't seem her usual bubbly self at all, there were no crude comments throughout the entire conversation, just "mhm" and "yep". The blonde put Alex's short answers down to the fact that she was tired, it was past midnight as it was.

"I'll go now Alex, so you can sleep."

Alex was about to object 'no' when she felt tears prick in her throat and threaten in her eyes. She wasn't over the events of the day.

"Night Pipes." She managed before pressing the all-too-familiar red button on her phone and falling apart.

Alex wasn't one to cry but she could still taste his bourbon lips, smell his cigarette smoke and hear his words. She wasn't as bothered by his actions as she was by his threats. Whoever said actions speak louder than words was very wrong, in this case anyway.

The raven-haired girl finally composed herself, rubbed her eyes with the back of her hands and clicked a button on her phone which caused it to light up the whole room, temporarily blinding herself. Her eyes finally focused and she tapped the letters on the touch screen keypad gently and tentatively as if she didn't know what her next word was going to be.

TO: PIPES

DO YOU WANNA HANG OUT TOMORROW? YOU COULD COME ROUND ABOUT ONE? X

There was that fateful kiss again, it seemed to be making it's way into every one of Alex's texts to the girl. Alex wasn't really expecting an answer until she would check her phone in the morning but yet here the reply was twenty minutes after the end of the conversation and two minutes after the sending of the text.

1 NEW MESSAGE - PIPES

YEAH SOUNDS GREAT, WILL SEE YOU THEN. XX

Alex smiled, two kisses, Piper really was stepping up the game, either that or two was her go to response, more than likely the latter.

She set an alarm for eleven o'clock so she knew she would be awake and somewhat alive when Piper arrived, then she tossed her phone onto the bedside table and closed her eyes hoping to God that she would somehow manage to get some sleep tonight.

Alex got up almost every two hours during the night to go and check on Elizabeth. Piper fell asleep quite easily as she had somehow managed to avoid any confrontation from her mother since she got in from babysitting.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper was in a particularly foul mood this morning as she was rudely awoken at four in the morning by a horrific dream, or more like a nightmare, of her being in her dad's car with him when it went into the canal. It was vivid, all the doors were locked and she couldn't get out, she was screaming but no sound was coming out. She looked towards her dad and he wasn't there, she was entirely alone, she screamed again, this time she saw Alex on the outside of her window. Alex was pulling and grasping at the handle with both hands, then trying to break the window with her fists, she alternated and repeated Piper's name like it was a frantic ritual, eventually Alex was gasping for breath and so was Piper. Alex rested her hands on the window and cried, "Pipes, I'm sorry." she said before making her way to the surface. Piper was crying too.

That was when she woke up. For the first hour that she was awake she was constantly fighting with herself mentally just so she wouldn't give in and text or maybe even ring Alex, Piper wanted to tell Alex that it was all okay, it wasn't her fault. For the second hour she just stared at the darkest corner of her bedroom and begged for sleep to take her, she managed to get back to sleep around six and woke up again around nine o'clock, she was not ready for the shit that her mom was about to throw at her when she descended down the stairs.

"Piper, I'm in the kitchen, come to me."

Piper rolled her eyes, her other had said only one sentence as of yet and her mom's voice was already grating on her.

"I'm coming." The blonde only wanted breakfast cereal and yet she had an idea that she was going to get so much more.

"Is that any way to speak to your mother?"

"I answered you, what more do you want?"

"Piper!"

"What mother?" She slammed the milk that she had retrieved from the fridge, down onto the counter thankful that the lid was on. "Are you about to tell me that this is all my fault, dad left because of me? It's my fault that he is missing?"

"I wasn't going to Piper but seeing as you are being a bitch I might as well. Yes Piper, it is our fault, if you hadn't of said what you said to your father he wouldn't have left, therefore he wouldn't have been pushed off the road and into the canal, he would still be here Piper, here with us."

As Piper went to grab a bowl from the draining board she noticed three empty beer bottles in the sink, beer wasn't usually Carol's poison of choice so she either ran out of wine or she had a man over, she didn't care to find out.

"Fuck you mom, do you really think that this is my fault? I told the both of you to stop arguing. I didn't tell him to leave and there is no way on this earth that I could have known what would happen to him so yeah Carol, fuck you."

"Piper, don't you dare talk to your mother like that and stop calling me Carol, it's mom to you." She yelled after Piper as she had stormed out of the room.

"I should just go back to bed and give up on the day before it's already began." She thought to herself. She was no longer hungry, in fact she felt a little sick, her mother's words had hurt her, twisted like a knife in her stomach.

Once Piper had curled up in bed she cried, a lot. She cried and grinded her teeth as the anger slowly released itself. She felt better after half an hour, but after the anger came the doubt, then the denial, then the guilt.

"Maybe I was the reason this happened, maybe it is my fault dad is missing, I told him I wanted them separate and happy, I think I'd rather have miserable parents than one missing parent." She thought to herself, her mind had over-analyzed everything.

Two more hours passed and Piper found herself blaming herself for her father's disappearance. For the first hour, part of Piper fought the ideas off, it wasn't her fault, it couldn't of been, she could never have known that this would happen. But then in the second hour she gave into emotional drain and started to believe herself. "It was my fault."

She couldn't stand the constant churning of her stomach and the ideas buzzing around her mind but just as she got up to attempt to go to the bathroom her phone buzzed on the side.

1 NEW MESSAGE - ALEX VAUSE

HEY PIPES, YOU STILL UP FOR TODAY?

Piper re-read the text as many as ten times. No kiss, was she annoyed at Piper, had she done something wrong? But she used the nickname Pipes. Piper settled for 'annoyed at someone but not her', and returned a text.

TO: ALEX VAUSE

YEP, I'LL BE THERE AROUND ONE X

She rolled out of be to attempt once again to go to the bathroom, no such luck, her phone buzzed again.

1 NEW MESSAGE - ALEX VAUSE

GOOD, SEE YOU THEN KID X

Piper smiled at the kiss before putting her phone into sleep mode and heading to the bathroom, she had to decide upon an outfit to wear, she had no idea why she felt the need to dress up for Alex, or in fact, why she got so giddy when she received a kiss on the end of her text, but she did.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex crawled out of bed at around half past eleven, half an hour after her alarm had gone off. She had laid in bed for that half hour mentally planning conversation starters and awkward gap fillers, as well as pondering what to wear. Alex hadn't felt this nervous since the first time she ever went on a date, her very first, first date.

"Fuck this!" She thought as she leaped out of bed, Elizabeth was at school and Diane was at work so Alex had the place to herself, no interruptions, hopefully. Not that that really mattered as her mom and sister had already met the girl, she wasn't planning on fucking her and this wasn't a date. "Maybe I should text her to see if she is still up for it." She thought to herself.

TO: PIPES

HEY PIPES, YOU STILL UP FOR TODAY?

Alex purposely left the kiss off of the end to see if she would elicit a response from Piper, she knew that she wouldn't get a verbal response from her but she wanted to see if she would get a kiss back even though she hadn't sent one. Her phone buzzed against the wood of her bedside table as she scraped her long black hair back and into a pony tail. "The proof is in the pudding." she thought to herself as she lifted the phone from it's place and slid the screen upwards.

1 NEW MESSAGE - PIPES

YEP, I'LL BE THERE AROUND ONE X

Alex got what she wanted, she got the little kiss at the end of the text. She had no idea why but just the thought of receiving one after she didn't put one made her feel warm and fuzzy inside. She smiled widely and shook her head at herself. "What is this girl doing to me."

TO: PIPES

GOOD, SEE YOU THEN KID X

Done, Alex went for a shower, she didn't expect a response from Piper, there was nothing she could really say to extend the conversation and longer.

Before Alex knew it Piper was knocking at her door. The raven-haired girl straightened out her black vest top and red plaid over shirt out and pulled up her black skinny jeans by the belt loops as she walked, Piper wouldn't care what she was wearing though, would she?

Alex swung the door open in a grand manner before acknowledging Piper who was dressed in a small light blue vintage-look sumer dress with tiny appliqued swallows all over. The raven-hared girl was stunned by how amazing Piper looked, the dress showed off her long tanned legs. "She must be a runner." Alex thought to herself as she looked Piper up and down once more before letting her step inside the apartment.

"Whatever happened to casual Friday?" Alex joked as Piper nervously shuffled around the door.

"Well, we aren't in the office."

"You work here babysitting Elizabeth so technically you are at the office Pipes."

Piper had no response, her cheeks simply reddened slightly at the mention of the nick name. Alex made her way over to the kitchen to make some drinks.

"Tea, coffee, hot chocolate, cold drink, alcohol?"

Piper just shrugged slightly, "Tea I guess." Alex threw her the signature Vause look that she always received from any Vause family member after uttering the phrase 'I guess.'.

"Tea would be great thank you." The blonde corrected herself as she shut the door behind her and bent down to take off her Doc Martens.

"Don't stare." Alex repeated the phrase in her head like a mantra as she paused what she was doing and flickered her eyes over to Piper's bum and back again every few seconds. By the third time Piper had cottoned onto the fact that Alex was indeed staring at her ass.

"Staring are we?" Piper queried, still facing away from Alex.

"I just ..." The raven-haired girl stumbled on her words, something that she didn't often do. "Nice Docs."

"Thanks." Piper commented as she threw her clutch bag onto the sofa and walked towards the breakfast bar and jumped upon one of the stools.

There was a short pause which only lasted a few seconds between the pair but felt that it lasted for an eternity. It wasn't particularly uncomfortable, it just felt lengthy. Alex broke the silence first.

"Milk and sugar?"

"Erm, just milk please Alex."

Alex finished off making the tea and slid it under Piper's nose as she propped herself up on her elbows at the breakfast bar, hands underneath her chin.

"So where do we start?" Piper asked.

"Start? This isn't a race Piper, just tell me what kind of music you like."

Thus began the conversation that brought them closer together, understanding more and more about each other. After about twenty minutes the pair had moved to the sofa, the telly quietly playing away to itself falling on deaf ears. They were just finishing up planning Elizabeth's birthday together, they planned on taking her swimming on the day before her birthday and then to an ice cream parlor after swimming. There was a short pause as Piper contemplated whether to leave or not, the conversation seemed to have reached a natural stopping point and yet the stubborn part of Piper yelled 'Stay!' in her head, a decision she may come to regret. She spoke.

"How's work?"

"Crap really, don't fancy talking about it." Alex snapped, not fully understanding the tone in which it had presented itself to Piper.

"I only asked, geez Alex."

"How's it going with your mom, any news with your dad yet?"

"Shit and no." Piper kept her answers simple, after Alex had snapped at her she didn't feel like talking much.

"Don't block me out Piper, I want to know if anything has happened between you and your mom, you can't lie to me."

"I'm not lying to you Alex, stuff with my mom is shit at the moment, that's all."

"There you go, you are blocking me out again."

"I'm not Alex, why are you so pissy about this, it shouldn't matter to you, you can carry on living your perfect life with your perfect little family and Sylvie, whoever the fuck she is! And I'll live my crappy little life with my fucked up family!" Piper had stood by this point, she didn't usually get this hyped up when it came to arguments but Alex, in all fairness, had began raising her voice first.

"Don't you dare tell me that my life is perfect, everyone has their own shit Piper, your shit comes from your mother mine comes from my boss, shit still stinks the same Piper!" Alex ha stood now too and was face to face with Piper, the height difference should have made Piper back down but she didn't. If there was one thing that Piper wasn't it was cowardly.

"Fuck you Alex, maybe this whole friendship thing isn't going to work because we don't seem to see eye to eye!"

Alex didn't know what to say or even how to. Piper swung the door open

"You can't leave without your shoes, and your bag."

"Fuck 'em"

Piper stormed out of the apartment and slammed the door behind her. She had her phone in her hand and that was all she needed.

Alex was thankful that nobody else was in the house. A part of her wanted to run s fast as she could out of the door and grab hold of Piper and not let her go until everything was alright between them again, the other half of Alex couldn't move, her feet rooted to the ground, too scared of what she had messed up to take the risk of making it worse. She settled for dropping onto the sofa and crying for the second day in a row, this was very unlike Alex.

After a few minutes she attempted to compose herself and realized very quickly how much she had fucked up. She shook her head trying her best to clear some sort of space to think, the words swam around her head filling every space in her mind 'you fucked up'.

When Alex finally fought the words off and thought about what she had done she made a possibly futile attempt to fix her mistake.

TO: PIPES

I'M SORRY PIPER, I FUCKED UP, PLEASE ACCEPT MY APOLOGY X

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper was raging by the time she reached the bus stop, so mad that she shouted at the bus driver for being too slow giving her change. She stormed straight to the back of the bus completely ignoring any odd looks she seemed to be receiving from other passengers. Piper took the backseat, as she sat down onto the dirty bus seat all of her anger seemed to dispel as if the cushion of the seat absorbed it all, the anger was replaced by jealousy, fear, and regret. She was jealous of what Alex had; she had a well paying job, a loving family unit and a 'girlfriend?' , she feared facing Alex again, feared that she had messed everything up with Alex and that she won't get another chance to spend time with her again, she regretted blowing up at Alex, it was a stupid thing to do.

The blonde let tears roll don her face as she looked out of the dusty bus window to see where she was, she fully contemplated jumping off at the next stop and walking back to Alex's apartment to apologize to her. The blonde was about to lift her arm to press the bell when her phone buzzed.

1 NEW MESSAGE - ALEX VAUSE

I'M SORRY PIPER, I FUCKED UP, PLEASE ACCEPT MY APOLOGY X

She forced herself to grin at the apology, she personally felt like it wasn't Alex's fault and that it was on her, especially after what her mother had said to her this morning.

TO: ALEX VAUSE

APOLOGY ACCEPTED, I FUCKED UP TOO, I SHOULDN'T HAVE FLIPPED, I'M SORRY FOR LEAVING, PLEASE ACCEPT MY APOLOGY X

Piper wasn't sure whether Alex would reply or not, she held her phone tight in her hand and pressed it into her chest. She let her head rest against the window and for a moment she considered letting herself drift off to sleep, she was emotionally drained an she was supposed to be at Polly's in just over an hour to help her set up for tonight's party.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex received the text and grinned slightly. Piper was always trying to one up Alex and she wasn't going to let her win this time, the raven-haired girl was very competitive.

TO: PIPES

YOU COULDN'T JUST ACCEPT MY APOLOGY, YOU HAD TO GIVE ONE AS WELL? ALWAYS TRYING TO ONE-UP ME PIPER CHAPMAN, WELL PLAYED, APOLOGY ACCEPTED XX

Two kisses, that was Alex's tactic, she didn't know whether she would get a reply or not but she knew for sure she had to get ready, Nicky had invited her to another party at that girl's house although this time it promised to be very different. The fuzzy-haired girl had stupidly slipped up to Sylvie about the party earlier on in the week and now she was coming too, and Nicky invited Lorna so Alex was going to be alone with Sylvie for the most part, or even the entirety of the night, and the worst part is that she had to give Sylvie a lift there and back on the back of her bike so she couldn't drink. Nicky wanted to keep the car free so that she could make a quick escape with Lorna if she needed to, she was giving Lorna a lift home after the party anyway.

Alex had nicknamed Nicky's car 'The PussyWagon' as other than Alex, she only used it to chauffeur possible fuck buddies and one night stands around in it, as far as Alex was aware, Nicky had never had sex in the car, she dreaded to think.

She waited about ten minutes but there was no reply so she left her phone on the sofa and dragged herself into the shower for her second shower of the day, the events of the afternoon so far had left her drained her immensely and so she felt like she needed a shower to wake herself up a little before she had to face her girlfriend. Alex rolled her eyes and sighed at the thought of Sylvie, she was going to need a lot more than just a shower before facing her.

After stepping out of he shower Alex mad a pot of coffee, poured herself a mug of it and walked into her bedroom to drip dry.

-0-0-0-0-0-

When Piper returned home her mother wasn't home, there was no note and the boys were at school. "Quiet house then." She thought to herself as she ascended the stairs, she intended to jump into the shower before she had to make her way round to Polly's.

Piper fell asleep fully clothed on the bed, apart from her Doc Marten's which she stupidly left at Alex's. She was rudely awoken over an hour later by Polly who was now blowing her phone up with texts and phone calls.

"Shit!" She exclaimed out loud as she noticed the time on her phone, she had promised to help Polly at five o'clock and it was now almost six o'clock.

She hadn't showered or changed but she was in a dress and that would suit Polly. Piper slipped on a pair of high heels and texted Polly.

TO: POLLY

ON MY WAY HONEY, SORRY JUST GOT CAUGHT UP WITH SOMETHING XXX

She was definitely trying to butter Polly up with kisses. She erased the missed calls and didn't even dare to read the texts for fear of the amount of expletives contained within them.

She grabbed a small over the shoulder bag from her closet and sped out of the door, she didn't bother leaving a note for her mom, it was only her dad that ever read them anyway and now he wasn't here to read them she didn't really see the point.

As she arrived at Polly's house Poll had her phone in her hand more than likely just about to text Piper back.

"There you are."

Piper still wasn't fully functional after waking up from her nap and after the day she had so far she wasn't sure that being fully functional was a great idea, she planned on helping Polly set up and then heading straight to the makeshift mini bar that Polly always assembled, so that she could drink herself into unconsciousness again.

That was exactly what she did.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex got dressed into black skinnies and a plain black vest top overlay ed with her favorite black leather jacket with the tartan elbow patches, she went for simple, she wasn't trying to impress anyone tonight, not whilst Sylvie was with her.

She as pouring a second cup of coffee when Elizabeth and Diane stepped through the door.

"Hey mom, hey kid."

Elizabeth ran straight over to Alex waving something in her face.

"Slow down Liz, what's that?" She grabbed hold of Elizabeth's hand to steady it so that her eyes could focus on the item in question, her eyes really weren't great.

"It's a tooth, I lost my first baby tooth today at school, I fell off the slide."

Alex chuckled at the excitement spread all over her sister's face. "Congrats kid, do you know what you have to do?"

"Yeah, mom told me all about it, you have to put the tooth under the pillow and then in the night one of the tooth fairies come to take it away and she leaves you a note."

Alex was grinning from ear to ear now. It was the same ritual that Alex received when she was young. Diane couldn't afford to leave money under the pillow for Alex and so she left a note instead thanking Alex for her teeth with a little drawing of the tooth fairy in the corner. Alex was pleased that even though they could afford, her mother carried on what appeared to now be a family tradition.

"I got a note from the tooth fairy every time I lost a tooth and when I took them into school for show and tell everyone was very impressed with them, only special people get notes from the tooth fairy." Alex pleasantly recalled the one day in kindergarten when she was the coolest kid in school, that didn't last long thanks to Jessica Wedge.

"How do you know I'll get a note then?"

Alex squatted down to be face to face with Elizabeth, "because you are one special kid."

"Thanks Al."

Elizabeth ran straight into her bedroom presumably to put the tooth under her pillow and get changed.

Alex stood up slowly and was met by her mothers eyes, wet with what Alex assumed was threatening happy tears.

"Thanks Alex, you make a wonderful sister."

"And you make a wonderful mom."

Diane beamed a smile that touched her eyes as she leaned forward and kissed Alex on the head.

The events of the previous day were almost forgotten and Piper's words resonated around her head 'perfect family' she was right on that point 'Sylvie, whoever the fuck she is'.

"Shit, Sylvie." Alex almost shouted before darting her eyes up to the clock. It was almost half past five, she had promised to pick Sylvie up so that they could go out to get something to eat before going to the party.

"Sylvie?" Diane queried as Alex downed her coffee.

"Yeah, I forgot I'm supposed to pick her up in 15 minutes."

Diane laughed, "That girl is crazy, she probably doesn't even know what day it is."

"That's my girlfriend mom." She commented as she began throwing the cushions off the sofa attempted to find her keys.

"I don't know what you see in that girl, or what she sees in you for that matter, you are never on time. Get yourself a decent girlfriend Alex, one that you won't forget about."

"I'll try." Alex wasn't really listening now as she stood in the door attempting to send Sylvie a text.

TO: SYLVIE

ON MY WAY NOW, MIGHT BE A BIT LATE, BE READY BABE.

Alex understood what her mom was trying to say to her, Sylvie just didn't give her butterflies anymore, that was even if she gave her butterflies in the start, she couldn't remember.

As Alex attempted to pull on her Doc Martens she was confused to feel that they didn't seem to fit, they were way too small.

"Shit, Piper." She almost shouted again.

"Another girlfriend you have forgotten about Al?"

Alex chose to ignore her mother's comment as she dashed inside her bedroom, grabbed the black backpack from the wardrobe, pulled on her Doc Martens and dashed back into the living room, she threw Piper's Doc Martens into the backpack and followed it with her clutch, grabbed her leathers off of the coat hook and yelled "Bye Mom, Bye Elizabeth" as she dashed out of the door.

She wouldn't usually rush, she was so used to being late now that Sylvie would probably have a heart attack if she was on time. Subconsciously, she knew why she was rushing. There was a good chance that Piper was going to be at this party tonight, she had mentioned it whilst they were making small talk earlier on in the day and it didn't click at the time that they were probably attending the same party just as they did last time.

There was just one problem, Sylvie was not going to let Alex get anywhere near Piper. For a flickering moment Alex considered ditching Sylvie and going to the party alone but seeing as there was no definite as to what terms the pair were speaking on Alex decided it best to have a buffer. She could always get rid of Sylvie by sending her to the mini-bar set up.

Alex jumped on her bike and kick started it before wheel spinning it out of it's space, tonight was probably going to be very long and very stressful.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper fought her way through the crowds towards the mini bar as it was now almost a half hour into the party. She really didn't expect to see a familiar face in the crowd surrounding the mini bar. Alex Vause with her arm wrapped around a girl. 'Sylvie' She thought to herself remembering what Elizabeth had told her. Piper stood still as Alex stood, whispered something into the girls ear and walked towards Piper.

Alex didn't really know what to say to Piper, she had got up o use the loo but now here she stood face to face with the girl she had argued with earlier the same day.

"Hey Pipes." Alex looked around the room diverting her eyes from Piper's gaze afraid that something inside her might push her closer to Piper.

"Hey Al, is that your girlfriend, she seems..." Piper was struggling to find a better word than 'nice' but she really couldn't bring herself to compliment Alex's girlfriend, she already hated the girl for reasons seemingly unknown.

"Bitchy?" Alex questioned crossing her arms across her chest, lifting her boobs slightly. Usually Alex would have intended the slight boob lift to give her an added advantage when attracting women but at this point she was simply crossing her arms in a protective manner.

"I was going to say nice but you said it." Alex giggled at Piper's comment.

"I guess I did, anyway, I'm off to the toilet." And with that Alex disappeared.

Piper headed off, she couldn't fight the jealous pangs that felt like they were slicing her stomach and so she was going to do something about it, she grabbed the nearest guy and started dancing with him in a somewhat seductive manner, she didn't even know his name, she was just using him to take her mind off of Alex.

Alex sat at the bar with Sylvie all night, thoughts of Piper running through her head, until she finally convinced Sylvie to dance with her, it took some talking, a considerable amount of alcohol and a false promise of sex before Sylvie gave in.

That's when the pair met again, on the dance floor, or Polly's living room as the truth was.

Piper's blue eyes locked with Alex's green ones as she glanced over the shoulder of the guy she was dancing with.

"Let's step this up." Piper thought to herself as she began grinding more and more against the guy she was with, who didn't seem to mind. She had had a few drinks and this seemed like a perfect idea, she was single after all, there was no crime in anything she was doing.

Alex couldn't stop herself from staring at Piper who was now sexually dancing up against a guy who looked about their age. Piper met Alex's gaze every few seconds and then looked back at the guy alternating between the two. Alex wasn't even paying attention to her girlfriend and was instead mesmerized by the blonde. For a moment it felt like Alex and Piper were the only two on the dance floor, this was far from true.

As the song changed everyone on the dance floor grabbed a partner for 'Pete's birthday slow dance' As Polly called it, Pete didn't look too amused.

Piper pulled the mystery man in close to her and this time locked eyes with Alex over the guy's shoulder as they hugged each other tightly and began to sway.

One of Alex's favorite songs was playing for the slow dance , Wings - by Birdy.

She pulled Sylvie in close mirroring Piper's movements as the pair remained focused upon each other for the entirety of the song.

Once the song ended the group on the dance floor dispersed slightly and more chatter could be heard around the house. Sylvie tugged Alex back to the mini-bar, she wasn't complaining about that, however, she had managed to lose Piper.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"You don't even know my name do you?" The guy yelled in an attempt to be heard over the music .

"Of course I know your name Jack." Piper spoke, she was very tipsy now and beyond forgetful at the best of times let alone after a few drinks.

"John, my name is John, Piper." With that he tutted and walked away.

Piper was about to call it a night and head home when she was approached by an attractive brunette who seemed slightly older than Piper.

"Care for a dance?" The girl asked as she placed her hand out for Piper, palm facing upwards.

"What about a drink instead...?" Piper asked pausing at the end for the lack of a name.

"Lucy, and yeah sure, let's get to the mini-bar Piper." With that she took Piper's hand and led her to the area where the mini-bar was.

The blonde had no clue how Lucy knew her name but she was beyond tipsy and beyond caring.

Alex lifted her eyebrows at the hot brunette that seemed to be making her way towards the mini-bar, she was somewhat disappointed to see that she was hand in hand with someone else and so she averted her eyes back to her girlfriend.

The brunette was fairly tall and stood taller than Alex as she sat on one of the stools at the mini bar.

"I'll have a beer, of your recommendation..." She said to the guy behind the bar, to Piper's relief it wasn't Larry manning the bar this time, instead it was a 6ft 2" weight lifter with what Piper called 'excessive and unnecessary muscles'. "... and ..." She paused so that Piper could insert her drink order.

"A Margarita" She finally said.

Alex whipped her head round so fast she feared for a second that it might fall off. Only Piper ever ordered margaritas and that voice was so distinctive Alex couldn't miss it for the world.

Piper noticed that Alex was sat at the bar but she didn't acknowledge her, she was playing a game and this one was going to be good.

After a while of whispering sweet nothings into Lucy's ear Piper bent forward and placed a slow kiss on her neck causing Lucy to moan slightly. Alex couldn't take it anymore. She fully understood her wanting to be with a man as there was a possibility that Piper was straight and yet here she was seemingly flaunting her open sexuality and it was with another girl, Alex couldn't comprehend why it wasn't with her.

The raven-haired girl stood, whispered to Sylvie that she needed the toilet and walked over to the other end of the mini-bar, grabbed Piper's wrist and held one finger up to Lucy.

"One sec." Alex said to the confused looking brunette. She dragged Piper with her all the way up into the upstairs bathroom where she left the door ajar as she spoke to Piper.

"What do you think you are playing at?" Alex questioned.

"I don't know what you are talking about." She replied, she seemed to have instantly sobered up.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, this stupid game you are playing needs to stop." She squeezed Piper's wrist tighter.

"What game?" Piper was playing dumb and it was pissing Alex off.

Alex squeezed Piper's wrist a little tighter again.

"Ow, Alex let go." Piper demanded as she twisted her wrist from side to side in an attempt to loosen Alex's death grip.

The raven-haired girl immediately dropped Piper's wrist, Alex didn't want to hurt her.

"This stupid little game where you try and make me jealous by grinding up and kissing everyone in this house! It's not going to work Piper, I have a girlfriend!"

Sylvie as now stood outside the bathroom door waiting for Alex, she wanted to go home. She couldn't help but look in when she heard shouting.

"Everyone in this house Alex, really? Two people is this whole house, you really do need your eyes testing!" Piper yelled back. "I'm not trying to make you jealous Alex, I was trying to have a good time and I guess you can't even give me that can you? If you haven't noticed I have been having a pretty shit time recently and I came out tonight to have some fun and enjoy myself so fuck you." Piper pushed Alex as hard as she could at the shoulders and Alex stumbled backwards, her back hit the tiles and Piper stormed out heading home.

Sylvie grabbed Piper's wrist as she exited the toilet. "Don't you ever dare do that to MY girlfriend again, do you understand?"

"Fuck you." Piper spat her words like venom and Sylvie silenced her with a punch to the face.

The blonde gasped as she reached up to her face with her free hand, her other wrist frantically twisting just as she ha done earlier, trying to escape the grip of Sylvie this time.

Alex's crazed girlfriend dropped Piper's wrist and walked straight into the bathroom to check on Alex.

Piper got a few concerned looks from witnesses to the punch and some questions but she ignored them all and shoved her way through the crowd, she just wanted to get out. Get out and go home.

So she did.

A/N: Thanks for reading. Leave a review please :) I adore reading them.


	17. Chapter 17 - Part one

A/N: I'm sorry it's a short one but this past week has been chocca block with stuff to do and places to go and people to look after and all sorts so I hope you appreciate that I am uploading this chapter in sections, I thought I owed you something after making you wait this long so here you go.

 **CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - Part one**

"Alex, are you okay?" Sylvie asked

"Yeah, I'm fine, where's Piper?"

"Don't worry about her Al, I sorted her for you."

"I have told you before Sylvie, don't get involved in other people's shit, I can handle my own thank you very much." Alex looked like she was one step away from hitting Sylvie.

"But you're my girlfriend, I have to protect you and you needed protecting."

"You need institutionalizing but you don't see me doing that do you? What did you do to her?"

"Punched her."

"Shit, Sylvie, you did what, you don't understand what that girl has been through."

"Whoa, don't get pissy with me I was only trying to help! How do you know her anyway?"

"She's Elizabeth's babysitter!" Alex replied curtly and fairly defensively, she wasn't even sure why she justified Sylvie's question with an answer, did it really matter who she was? Alex pushed passed Sylvie forcing her way out of the bathroom and back into the roaring crowd of people. She had to find Piper at any expense, even if that expense was her current girlfriend.

"Piper!" She yelled through the crowd hoping to hear a reply or see a girl turn around. Nothing.

She made a break for the front door as she assumed Piper would head straight home, she turned at the bottom of the stairs and walked past the mini-bar. There she was, Piper was stood talking to the hot brunette who stood tall at about 5ft 11". Alex felt jealousy rip through her, and then guilt. She shouldn't be jealous of another girl unless it was about her girlfriend, which it wasn't.

Alex saw the girl hand Piper a piece of paper which she could only assume was the girl's number, before the blonde kissed the girl on the cheek and swiftly made her exit, completely dismissing the fact that Alex was watching.

Alex mentally fought with herself, should she go after Piper and see if she is okay or does she go back to her girlfriend? She chose the former; it wasn't really a hard decision.

The raven-haired girl shuffled as fast as she could through the crowd and followed Piper through the doors, jogging slightly as she met the cool breeze, to catch up with the girl.

"Piper, wait up." Alex shouted.

Piper flipped her middle finger over her shoulder and without turning around spoke. "Fuck you Alex; do you even deserve my time?"

"I believe I do because I owe you an apology. You have time for that right?"

Piper turned around as Alex came to stand before her. "Go on."

"I'm really sorry about my girlfriend, she has impulse control issues."

"I noticed." Piper snarked pointing to her quickly bruising eye.

"Shit, I'm so sorry Piper."

"If you have to apologize for your girlfriend should you even be with her?"

"She was protecting me Piper because you shoved me against that wall!" Alex was now very confused by her own emotions, she had just been apologizing to Piper, therefore she was on Piper's side and yet here she was, defending her girlfriend. There was two halves of Alex in that moment, what people expected her to do and what she wanted to do. These were to vastly different halves.

"I can't fucking believe you Alex, you want to know what goes on at home so you can help me but if you knew the entire truth you would just tell me it's all my fault which you basically just did with that last statement! You're just like my fucking mom!" Piper was fuming.

Her words cut into Alex like knives, she didn't think of her words that way but now Piper had pointed out her mistake, it was as clear as day.

Piper turned to continue walking towards her house when Alex grabbed her wrist and turned her back.

"Oh, this again." Piper remarked as she held up her wrist.

Alex dropped it immediately. "I'm sorry Pipes, it's just that..."

At that point the pair were rudely interrupted by Sylvie. "Alex, are you coming back inside?"

"Come here Sylvie." Alex demanded as if dealing with a problem child. When Sylvie came near enough Alex grabbed her wrist just as she had done with Piper's moments before, this made Piper tut. "I want you to apologies to Piper for punching her."

Sylvie just crossed her arms freeing herself from Alex's grip. "Don't be so stupid, she deserved it."

"She did not deserve it!" Alex almost screamed at Sylvie now, she felt like her emotions were playing tennis between the two girls.

Sylvie simply tutted.

"That's okay Alex; I don't need an apology from her." Piper purposely omitted her name, instead changing it for a pronoun. "I've got this." And with that Piper swung her right fist towards Sylvie's face, hitting her square in the jaw making Sylvie stumble backwards.

Alex stood, rooted to the spot, awestruck, she didn't know whether to applaud Piper or reassure her girlfriend, Piper began walking away. "Sylvie, get back in the house, put ice on your jaw, I will be back in a minute." With that Sylvie retreated like an injured puppy back to the party and Alex followed Piper to her house. She didn't even check to see of Sylvie was okay before walking away.

"Piper, please."

This time Piper whipped herself around. "What Alex!"

"I have your shoes, and your clutch."

"Fuck it, keep em. Give 'em to your girlfriend or attack dog or sex cow or whatever you want to call her" Piper walked away to her house.

"Fuck, Piper!" Alex ran her hands through her thick black locks and sighed in exasperation, she was faced with a decision once again, go back to Sylvia or follow Piper to her house.

The raven-haired girl returned to where she had left her motorbike, lifted the seat, grabbed the back pack from inside the storage unit and headed to Piper's house.

Alex knocked loudly on the door. "Piper, let me in please."

Piper's drunken mom answered the door. "Piper doesn't want to talk to you."

"You've got room to talk." She said fairly calmly as she pushed past her and up the stairs, she didn't have a clue which was Piper's room so she carefully opened all of the doors so as not to disturb anyone more than she already had, it was the fourth door she opened that lead to Piper's room.

Piper was slumped on the bed, her face buried in the pillows. Alex could just make out the muffled sounds of screaming and crying. She carefully perched herself on the edge of the bed and placed a hand on Piper's lower back.

"Go away mom." She screamed into the pillow.

"Turn over Piper!" Alex lifted her hand as Piper rolled over; she obviously realized that it wasn't her mother by the sound of her voice.

"What Alex?" Piper snapped looking up at Alex; she wiped her eyes with the back of her hands.

"You tell me your shit and I'll tell you mine."

Piper sighed heavily and threw her arm across her eyes, flinching slightly as her skin met the bruise forming on her eye.

"My shit is that my mom blames me for my father's disappearance." Piper mumbled, barely audible to Alex's ears.

Alex pushed her shoes off of her feet and then shuffled onto Piper's bed, eventually lying down next to her when Piper budged up.

The pair remained in a strangely comfortable silence for a few minutes before Piper finally removed her arm from over her eyes; she squinted slightly as she looked at the light bulb illuminating the room.

"Your shit now." Piper stated as she tilted her head to the side.

Alex tilted her head to meet Piper's gaze, she could see that the blonde had been crying now.

"My shit is my asshole of a boss who thinks it's okay to feel me up and then threaten my family."

Piper's eyes widened at Alex's sentence. "Did said boss threaten Elizabeth?"

Alex just nodded as tears decorated her cheeks, she wasn't crying as such but her eyes were definitely watering.

Piper felt that the matter was personal now; she had gained such a strong bod with the young girl in a very short amount of time.

"How fucking dare he!" Piper just assumed that Alex's boss was male.

Alex simply nodded again.

The blonde propped herself up on her elbows now, all hurt emotions now replaced by a burning rage spreading through her. She could feel a bubble of anger rising in her throat, threatening to turn into words.

"You need to leave your job Alex, she isn't safe, you don't know what he can do."

Once again Alex nodded; she could do nothing but resign to the fact that he had her cornered, so to speak.

"Where do you expect me to go Pipes, my mom needs the income, I need the income. How the hell am I supposed to take she-devil on dates with no money?"

The mood had lightened a little after Alex's nickname for Sylvia.

Another silence gripped the room as Alex stared at Piper and Piper stared at the wall.

"Why did you follow me?"

Alex was a little taken aback by the question and she furrowed her brow when Piper looked at her.

"Follow you?"

"Yeah, why didn't you go back to the party with Sylvie and leave me to my strop?"

"Because I know you Piper."

This time it was Piper's turn to furrow her brow; she relaxed back into the bed lying down again next to Alex.

A silence fell between the pair and they both shifted to their sides facing each other.

Piper was the first to break the silence.

"What do you mean, I know you?"

Alex giggled slightly and brushed a loose strand of blonde hair back behind Piper's ear.

"I mean that I know you. If I had left you alone to your strop you would have never forgiven me, you are one of those 'don't-let-the-sun-set-on-an-argument' kinds of people aren't you?"

Piper grinned and blushed slightly at Alex's actions. She let out a small breathy hum that sounded like a muffled laugh.

"You know me too well."

Alex replied with her sexy low hum of approval.

Piper wanted to close her eyes and spend the night in Alex's company but she feared that if she closed her eyes Alex might leave and go running back to Sylvia, leaving her there in her bed alone again. Alone was something she didn't really fancy being right now.

The raven-haired girl didn't dare admit to Piper that the real reason she hadn't gone running back was because she wanted to be around Piper a lot more than she wanted to be around her girlfriend. Sylvia was tucked away in the back of her mind right now and at the forefront was Piper.

Alex mentally scrolled through and gathered her thoughts together, Piper had just very slowly closed her eyes and the dark haired girl was now playing with the slight curl at the tip of a tendril of Piper's hair.

"Shit Sylvie!" She gasped as she jumped off the bed, awakening a half asleep Piper who was fully clothed.

"Sorry" Alex announced as she yanked her own shoes on, wiggling her foot round to find the best fit.

Piper grunted slightly as she lifted her head, at some point she had fallen asleep whilst Alex was playing with her hair.

Alex fumbled clumsily in her black backpack pulling out Piper's doc Martens and clutch.

She received another grunt from Piper.

The raven-haired girl's eyes darted around the room in hopes of finding some sort of pyjama wear, no such luck.

"Here, put this on kid." Alex playfully threw a black t-shirt with an orange and white Harley Davidson logo adorning it.

It landed on Piper's face; she was now struggling to stay awake.

"Put the t-shirt on Piper."

Piper was far too into her sleep now to be disturbed. The blonde grabbed the t-shirt, pulled it to one side of her face and rolled onto her front, taking the t-shirt with her, trapping it under her body.

Alex sighed in exasperation. "I think I've lost that one." She joked to herself in her head as she pried Piper's shoes off of Piper's feet.

Piper grunted which Alex took as a 'yes, you have lost it now.'

Alex grabbed the bag from the floor which as now almost empty due to the relocation of a pair of Doc Martens and headed out of Piper's bedroom and straight down the stairs to the front door, she didn't dare to stay any longer in case she had Sylvie banging on the door.

She headed straight back to the party and headed to the mini-bar, she didn't even bother looking for Sylvia. She ordered a Margarita and swigged it back in one, the girl that Piper was talking to earlier on in the night was still standing over in the corner near the mini bar, she was now flirting with a different girl.

A bit of Dutch courage in her system and Alex was up, she walked over to Lucy and flirted slightly with her eyebrows to get closer.

"Hey beautiful." Lucy spoke.

Alex just lifted her eyebrows. Girls were swarming around Lucy as if she was something special.

"Don't you dare break her heart?" Alex almost yelled over the music.

"Who, your girlfriend? Don't worry I won't touch her."

"No, the blonde one, Piper, don't break her heart." Alex replied slightly confused and taken aback.

"Oh, I won't." She shrugged her shoulders and as Alex attempted to walk away she stuffed a piece of paper into her pocket. "Call me." She shouted.

Alex made a disgusted noise and walked off to find Sylvie completely ignoring the piece of paper so as not to give the girl a rise even though Alex had to admit that the girl was pretty damn hot.

A/N: Hope this keeps you satisfied until the next part. Please leave your thoughts in a review. I always adore reading them.


	18. Chapter 17 - Part two

A/N: Thanks for all who have reviewed on the last part of the chapter, I am sorry there has been huge gaps in my updates as the past couple of weeks have been mega busy. Hopefully there will be more frequent updates from here on out. I3VauseMan - There's an easter egg for you, in the form of a song as usual, happy hunting. Thanks for being patient and I hope you enjoy this section of the chapter. You guys deserve it!

 **CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - Part Two**

"Sylvie, come on we are going home." Alex demanded as she entered the kitchen and saw her leaning over the island taking shots with Nicky.

"Seriously Nicky, you have to drive!" Alex yelled.

"Calm down, Lorna already left, I'll just be drunk driving myself home tonight." Nicky commented in between the shots she was taking, neither Sylvia or Nicky missed a beat, they were both fully synchronized. There was a crowd gathered around the pair as they sped down the island from one end to the other taking a line of roughly 20 shots each, Alex prayed that the green and blue liquid that they were consuming was low alcohol percentage otherwise she would be in for a bit of a shit night.

"I hate to ruin your fun guys but finish your shots, we are going home." Alex was stood in the crowd of people at the front with her arms crossed.

The pair slammed down their last two shot glasses and wiped their mouths in unison causing a loud round of applause to ripple through the crowd.

Alex just rolled her eyes and waited for the crowd to calm down.

"Nicky, Sylvia, let's go home, I'm driving." The pair were finishing their bows before they followed her out of the door and into the car.

Alex sat in the driving seat, tightly gripping the steering wheel as her knuckles turned white. Nicky opened the door to the back of the car and pushed Sylvia in, not bothering to put a seat belt on the wildly drunk woman.

"How much has she had to drink?" Alex asked as Nicky slipped into the passenger seat of the car.

"Since when did you care about how much people drink?" Nicky slurred.

"Since I am the only one close enough to sober to remember tonight." Alex huffed as she turned on the car.

She heard a loud snore come from the back seat and she rolled her eyes.

"You're girlfriend really isn't that bad Alex, she's alright once she loosens up a bit."

Alex rolled her eyes once again as she drove away.

"Well, don't get attached." Alex said bluntly.

"Oh, well what are you going to do about your bike?" Nicky questioned wanting to divert from the subject.

"I'll drop Sylvie off at hers, I can't be dealing with her in this drunken state, then I'll drive us to yours and stay the night, I'll pick my bike up in the morning and ride it home then."

"You can't take her home in that state, bring her to mine, I'll drop her off in the morning."

Alex rolled her eyes for what seemed like the hundredth time this evening.

"Fine Nicky, but I swear to god if she throws up..."

"You will be cleaning it up, she's your girlfriend not mine." Nicky interrupted, she seemed to be sobering up as she opened the car window and let the fresh air flow through.

Alex huffed as they reached the outside of Nicky's house and Nicky rolled the window back up.

"Let's get her then." Alex huffed as she bent her tall frame to get out of the car.

The pair tucked Sylvie up in Nicky's bed, Nicky curled up on the beanbag in the corner and Alex decided upon the floor. She really didn't want to risk being thrown up on, especially since she didn't have a spare set of clothes.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper awoke to an empty household again, of course, it was Saturday which meant football practice for the boys, just because there was no dad now it didn't mean the boys should miss out.

After investigating the house for people and grabbing a few slices of toast, Piper ascend the stairs and went to climb back in bed when she realized that there was a t shirt sitting n top of the covers and she was still wearing last night's dress. Her head hurt but it wasn't until she saw the t shirt that she remembered why.

Sylvia had punched her. Now she felt her fist ache, it was as if each part of her bod was slowly waking up piece by piece. "Oh, shit, yeah I punched Sylvia." She thought to herself as she nodded and passed the plate from her right hand to her left, inspecting the bruises on her knuckled.

She squeezed her hand tighter into a fist and winced slightly.

After eating the toast and inspecting the t shirt with buttery hands she came to the conclusion that it must belong to Alex, she vaguely remembered shouting at Alex in the street and then talking to her whilst in bed.

She decided upon sending a text to Alex before she even dared to investigate the condition of her face in the bathroom mirror.

TO: ALEX VAUSE

SORRY FOR SHOUTING AT YOU LAST NIGHT, I HAVE YOUR T-SHIRT, I WILL GIVE IT TO YOU ON SUNDAY WHEN I AM NEXT BABYSITTING. XX

She sent two kisses but didn't really expect any back, she wasn't even sure whether she was expecting a reply but she got one.

1 NEW MESSAGE - ALEX VAUSE

THAT'S OKAY, I'LL BE IN THE AREA, I'LL PICK IT UP IN ABOUT AN HOUR.

No kisses. Piper was just relieved to see that she had replied. She was curious though as to why Alex would be in this area still. She shrugged her shoulders and walked into the bathroom, she prodded her face lightly and sucked air in through her teeth as she winced at the pain."Shit." She thought to herself "That's gonna need a lot of make up to cover." She figured she would just stay in today and then try and cover it up tomorrow when it was less swollen and slightly more brown.

As she sauntered back into her bedroom Piper really had nothing else to do so she settled on sending Alex another text.

TO: ALEX VAUSE

EMPTY HOUSE IF YOU WANT TO COME AND CHILL. XX

It was a long shot as Piper knew Alex always seemed to be very busy.

1 NEW MESSAGE - ALEX VAUSE

CAN'T SORRY, GOT TO TAKE SYLVIE HOME AND THEN GO HOME TO CHANGE BEFORE WORK.

No kisses, once again. Piper closed her eyes and exhaled deeply through her nose, she was mentally counting to ten in her head. She hated the fact that Alex had a girlfriend and after last night she couldn't really believe she was still with Sylvie.

"Fine." Piper thought to herself as she angrily tapped the screen with her finger.

TO: ALEX VAUSE

FINE, I'LL LEAVE YOUR T SHIRT ON THE DOORSTEP, YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE TO KNOCK THEN. OH AND TELL YOUR GIRLFRIEND THAT I APPRECIATE THE BLACK EYE AND THAT I HOPE SHE APPRECIATES THE PUNCH TO THE JAW.

This time Piper didn't put any kisses, she really wasn't up to playing Alex's bullshit games and the blonde decided that it was just about time that she played a game of her own, the dating game.

Piper took Alex's t-shirt and threw it outside of the front door, she didn't even bother placing it nicely on the step. Tears were streaming down her face now, she felt like she had just gone through a bad break up when in fact she had never been in the relationship in the first place.

When Piper returned upstairs she flipped open her phone case to check for a reply. No reply. She didn't really expect or want one, the matter of the fact was that she wouldn't know what to do if she had one.

The blonde then noticed the small scrap of lined paper sticking out of one of the card holder sections in her phone case. Pulling it out, she noticed that it read 'Piper, call me' with a little smiley face and then directly below was a number. Piper narrowed her eyes and then widened them as she remembered grinding on a tall brunette named Lucy to try and make Alex jealous.

She smiled as the cogs in her head turned and formulated a plan.

TO: LUCY

HEY, IT'S PIPER, THE BLONDE FROM LAST NIGHT, FANCY GETTING A DRINK SOMETIME.

Piper wasn't getting her hopes up waiting for a reply so she put her phone down on the bed and immediately picked it back up again when it buzzed.

1 NEW MESSAGE - LUCY

HEY PIPER, HOW ABOUT A DATE INSTEAD? I'LL PICK YOU UP FROM WHEREVER AT 7PM ON WEDNESDAY? XX

"There's a girl who knows how to use kisses." Piper thought to herself as she grinned wildly, she had almost forgotten about Alex when she began banging on the door.

"Piper, I know you're in there, answer the door!" Piper just ignored Alex and looked back down at her phone.

TO: LUCY

PERFECT, SEE YOU WEDNESDAY AT 7, I'LL LET YOU KNOW WHERE TO PICK ME UP FROM. XX

She knew she couldn't have Lucy pick her up from her house, not without her mother's barrage of questions, she couldn't go to Polly's because she was on holiday with Pete as of Monday and really there was nowhere else she could go. That was when it hit her, she could get Lucy to pick her up from the Vause's apartment, she was told she was welcome any time and so surely they wouldn't mind. It would also give Alex a chance to see what she was missing out on by having an asshole girlfriend.

Piper was practically beaming now as the strings of her plan pulled together.

"Piper, seriously, you need to talk to me, open the door."

Piper rolled her eyes and looked out of the window, she saw a woman sat on the back of Alex's bike and then she closed her curtains again. If bitch face was anywhere near the situation then she most certainly did not want to be in it.

Eventually Piper heard the roar of the bike's engine and a squeal from the tires spinning against the road. She then felt a buzz from her phone.

1 NEW MESSAGE - ALEX VAUSE

FINE PIPER, HAVE IT YOUR WAY.

Piper just locked her phone and threw it onto the bed beside her before getting up, pulling on some slacks and crawling back into bed, she was already done with today and it had barely even started.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex woke up cold and blanket-less on Nicky's bedroom floor and it took a while before her mind was able to process what was going on.

She remembered having to dive everyone home last night, she remembered the jealousy that spread through her like wildfire as she saw Piper with that other girl, she remembered the warmth of Piper next to her on the bed.

She rubbed her eyes and sat up, the red blanket she was curled up in the night before was now bundled up under Nicky's four poster bed. Alex looked over at Nicky, who was still fast asleep curled up on the bean bag, and then lifted herself up onto the bed where she was greeted by a lightly snoring Sylvia. She rolled her eyes and then slid of the end of the bed, deciding to let sleeping dogs lie for just another hour.

Alex dragged herself downstairs and set up the percolator to make a pot of coffee before she pulled out her phone. It buzzed.

1 NEW MESSAGE - PIPES

SORRY FOR SHOUTING AT YOU LAST NIGHT, I HAVE YOUR T-SHIRT, I WILL GIVE IT TO YOU ON SUNDAY WHEN I AM NEXT BABYSITTING. XX

Alex quickly tapped a response and tucked the phone into her pocket, she smiled slightly to herself as her eyes darted around the room, wary of any eyes watching her grin at the received text.

1 NEW MESSAGE - PIPES

EMPTY HOUSE IF YOU WANT TO COME AND CHILL. XX

As appealing as that sounded, Alex had to somehow get Sylvie home and she did not, for one minute, that Nicky would carry through her promise of taking Sylvie home, so she would have to do it herself.

TO: PIPES

CAN'T SORRY, GOT TO TAKE SYLVIE HOME AND THEN GO HOME TO CHANGE BEFORE WORK.

She hated the reality of it all but she couldn't abandon Sylvie to go and hang out with another girl, any other girl would have been fine, but not Piper. It felt more like she was cheating on Piper than Sylvie.

1 NEW MESSAGE - PIPES

FINE, I'LL LEAVE YOUR T SHIRT ON THE DOORSTEP, YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE TO KNOCK THEN. OH AND TELL YOUR GIRLFRIEND THAT I APPRECIATE THE BLACK EYE AND THAT I HOPE SHE APPRECIATES THE PUNCH TO THE JAW.

"Whoa." Alex thought to herself, "What got her goat?" Alex was seemingly naive to the fact that the mention of Sylvie's name was what set her off.

Alex stuffed her phone back into her pocket as Nicky walked down the stairs.

"What you hiding Vause? Titty magazine?"

"Sorry Nick, I thought you were Sylvia."

Nicky frowned at Alex and then stepped up to the percolator.

"Pour us a cup then Al." Nicky pointed to the cupboard that the cups were kept in even though Alex had been there way too many times and she knew exactly where everything was kept. "You texting blondie?"

"Was." Alex stated as she poured three cups of coffee out, she planned on waking Sylvia up with one shortly.

"You still hung up on that one Vause?" Nicky asked stuffing a biscuit into her mouth.

"I am not hung up on Piper, I have Sylvie remember?" Alex said, flipping her head over her shoulder walking away from Nicky. She lifted the cups she was holding in a sort of shrug gesture.

Nicky rolled her eyes. "Yeah right, let's see how long that lasts for." She muttered under her breath as she lifted the cup of coffee to her lips.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"Sylvie." Alex said quietly as she stepped inside the room.

"What bitch." Came the muttered reply. It was evident that she was still deep in her slumber. "Fuck you blondie."

Alex furrowed her brow assuming that she could only be talking about Piper. The raven-haired girl placed the two cups of coffee on Nicky's bedside table and then carefully perched herself next to Sylvia.

"It's me Sylvie, wake up, we have to go now." She shook the sleeping woman gently and she slowly began to open her eyes.

"Alright then, let's get up and go, I have to get home."

Sylvie had barely had time to rub her eyes before Alex thrust the coffee in her direction and disappeared out of the room.

She thrust her hand into the pocket where she thought she had last placed her phone and pulled out a piece of paper instead. She furrowed her brow as she uncrumpled the piece of lined paper. It read:

DROP ME A TEXT IF YOU WANT TO EARN SOME EXTRA MONEY, YOU LOOK LIKE YOU WOULD BE GOOD AT WHAT I DO.

She left her name and number underneath. Lucy. Alex was almost tempted until she saw that name. She screwed the paper back up an thrust it back into her pocket, she wasn't going to text but she sure as hell wasn't going to throw it away either.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex and Sylvie walked to back to Polly's house from Nicky's as it wasn't far. Th pair jumped aboard Alex's bike that she had left there the night before and rode to Piper's house where Alex was surprised to see that Piper had kept her word about leaving the t-shirt on the door top. She couldn't leave her like this, they had to make amends, didn't they? Even if it was just for Elizabeth's sake.

"Sylvie stay on the bike, I'll be right back I just have to talk to a friend." Sylvie's visor was down and so she couldn't really read her expression but due to the lack of words and the simple nod of her head she guessed that Sylvie wasn't feeling anything much more than hungover right now.

"Piper, I know you're in there, answer the door!" Alex yelled as she knocked loudly on the door. She paused or a while giving the girl time to answer. After a minute Piper still hadn't opened the front door and so she tried again.

"Piper, seriously, you need to talk to me, open the door."

Once again nothing came of it. Alex didn't have time for this, she had to be at work soon and she needed a nap, a shower and a change o clothes before she could bring herself anywhere near being ready for what the day, and her boss, were going to throw at her.

TO: PIPES

FINE PIPER, HAVE IT YOUR WAY.

She left the t-shirt in the front garden, she didn't even bother picking it up, Piper could either have it or she could leave it there, it was entirely up to her.

Alex left Piper behind with a roar of the engine and a squeal of the tires against the surfacing of the road.

-0-0-0-0-0-

The pair didn't talk until Sunday came around and they had to come face to face, even if it was only for a few minutes. Piper arrived at four o'clock as she was asked.

"Oh, hey, it's you." Alex said as she answered the door.

"Yeah, me." Piper pushed past Alex and walked straight over to the breakfast bar. Elizabeth was playing with her Barbie's in her room and Diane was getting ready for work. Alex sat down on the sofa and proceeded to put her converse on.

Piper placed her bag down on the breakfast bar and pulled out Alex's t-shirt which she threw onto the sofa.

"I believe this belongs to you."

Alex looked over at the t-shirt and then back up at Piper.

"You could have kept it if you wanted it."

"You came to fetch it so I assumed you wanted it, but you left it there, I didn't want it so it was either here or in the bin."

"Oh, thanks." Alex said somewhat downhearted, she paused before speaking again. "It doesn't have to be like this Piper."

"Oh really Alex." Piper whipped her head round to face Alex. "You really should have thought about that when you kept your girlfriend after you spent half the night curled up with me, she punched me if you don't remember." Piper was angrily pointing at her bruised eye now.

"Shit, sorry about that." Alex apologized as she saw the dark bruise surrounding Piper's eye. Alex was now standing before Piper reaching her hand out to touch her face.

"Just don't Alex." Piper uncrossed her arms and batted Alex's hand away.

Alex just nodded, she knew that there was nothing that she could do to change Piper's mind about the situation other than to dump Sylvia and Alex really wasn't sure whether she was willing to make that leap. She really wanted to but she knew how much of a psycho Sylvie was, she already had her boss threatening her family, she didn't need Sylvia doing it too. Plus, Alex enjoyed the sex, she knew damn well that she could get any woman she wanted but Sylvie really was the only one she allowed to fuck her, in general the one night stands were her fucking other people. She couldn't stand anyone seeing her vulnerable but Sylvia really knew how to work her and she was willing to put her fears aside for good sex. She was selfish and childish and she knew it.

"I'm sorry." Was all that Alex could say. She turned and walked away, grabbing her leathers from the coat hook as she left.

Piper sighed as Alex shut the door.

"You and that girl eh? When will you pair ever get on?" Diane said as she came through the door, she must have just caught a glimpse of Alex leaving as she left the apartment. "Whoa, Piper, what happened to your eye?" Diane seemed concerned by the bruising on Piper's eye. She raised her hand to touch it in just the same manner as Alex had just moments before.

Piper moved her head to the side hoping to avoid being touched. Diane got the message and lowered her hand.

"Alex's girlfriend punched me."

"That wackjob, I don't even know what Alex sees in her."

"Me neither." Piper let out a half hearted giggle in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Elizabeth, Piper is here now, come and give me a kiss I'm leaving for work."

"Oh, hey, Diane, I have a date on Wednesday, with a girl and my mom isn't really okay with gays so is it okay if she picks me up from here?"

Diane's face lit up and a smile spread straight from one ear to the other. "Are you kidding Piper, I'd be delighted to meet the young woman who has stolen your heart. You are practically family. "

Piper also smiled back, she loved the idea of being part of the family.

"One condition though Piper, I have to give you a makeover, you can even wear one of my dresses! Oh and you can borrow my shoes!" Diane seemed incredibly enthusiastic about the whole situation.

Elizabeth came out of her room at the exact moment that Diane started talking. "We get to give Piper a makeover? That's so cool."

Diane looked at Piper and then over to Elizabeth as if she was asking silent permission to let her help.

"Yep, on Wednesday you get to help your mom give me a makeover for my date." Piper squatted down low to Elizabeth even though she didn't necessarily have to due to Elizabeth's height.

"Awesome!" The young girl fist pumped the air and did a little spin. Piper was glad to see that the family were so happy about her date but she new on family member wouldn't be, the one family member she swore she didn't give a shit about right now.

"Who's the lucky lady that stole your heart then Piper?" The young girl asked.

Piper widened her eyes at Elizabeth. "How did you know it's a girl?"

"I've seen the way you look at Alex, you like girls I can tell." The young girl was very matter-of-fact about the situation and she let out a small gin when Piper blushed.

"And on that note I am leaving for work." Diane said, somewhat awkward about the situation that had presented itself. "Give me a kiss Elizabeth and you keep that big mouth of yours closed, we don't need Alex finding out about this." Diane warned as she left the apartment.

"Whats her name?" Elizabeth asked as her mom left for work.

"Lucy."

"Is she pretty?"

"Yeah, really pretty."

"Does she..." and thus began an entire night of interrogation. Piper probably would have been annoyed by it if it wasn't for the fact that this was the first time anyone had ever payed any interest in anything that was going on in her life. Apart from Alex of course. For a fleeting moment Piper allowed herself to imagine how Alex would feel if she saw her on Wednesday and then anger ripped through her. "Fuck her." She thought. If she was going to have a girlfriend then Piper as going to have one too.

Piper had the entire scenario thought out a little too well. Bringing Lucy to the Vause's apartment meant that Alex would get to see her leave with a hot tall brunette that wasn't her for a date she was sure to have fun on. And if Elizabeth didn't tell Alex about the date then she wouldn't have the option of leaving the house. Plus there was the added bonus that Diane was going to be there to do the job that in hind sight, Carol should be doing. Piper didn't care to much for the loss of her mother's participation, thankful, was more likely the word she was looking for. Diane always looked stunning, whether she was going out to work at any of her jobs, or going to the grocery store. Even when she wasn't trying to look good, she looked like she had spent hours doing her hair and make up when in reality Piper had witnessed for herself that it took her mere minutes to get ready.

"We are going to make you look so beautiful." Elizabeth said between yawns. She was lying down on the sofa with her head on Piper's lap as Piper played with her hair, she had a small bear wrapped up in her arms.

"I think it's just about bedtime for you young lady." Piper said as she went to stand up.

The youngest Vause leaped to her feet. "Oh, that reminds me of a song." She ran over to the CD player in the corner and pressed play before skipping to the correct song.

Piper grabbed the remote control with both hands and held it to her mouth as she pretended it was a microphone. Elizabeth tucked her bear under her arm and pretending to play what Piper could only assume was a mix of air guitar, air piano and air drums. The pair belted out the song 'So Beautiful - by Superchick' and then retreated back to Elizabeth's room once the song had finish. Piper couldn't stop smiling to herself the whole night.

She was looking forward to Wednesday. That was until Alex burst through the apartment doors at 9 o'clock dragging a giggling girlfriend behind her.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed this part of Chapter Seventeen. Please leave a reiew, I love receving them. Hopefully the next update will be up soon.


	19. Chapter 17 - Part three

A/N: I am going to start off with a big thank you to all of those who reviewed the last chapter and shared their ideas. My biggest thank you goes to I3VauseMan though who gave me the idea for this chapter. You truly are my sidekick and my muse. I hope you all enjoy this awesome collaboration of minds and I hope you enjoy the next section of the chapter.

 **CHAPTER SEVENTEEN Part three**

"Erm, what's she doing here?" Piper said as she crossed her arms, raised an eyebrow and began tapping her foot, she looked like a mother expecting an explanation.

Alex completely ignored Piper and walked straight past her, it was obvious that Sylvia had been drinking and she fully understood Diane's wishes for Sylvia not being allowed into the apartment.

Piper followed them into the hallway demanding an explanation. Alex slammed her bedroom door, she really did feel like the mother figure now.

The blonde tapped her knuckles on the door. "Alex, seriously, you are supposed to b at work and you know Sylvia isn't allowed in the apartment."

Alex opened the door slightly and placed her head in the gap. "Yeah but mom isn't here and you aren't gonna tell are you Pipes?"

Piper didn't have time to respond before Alex shut the door. She rolled her eyes and made her way back into the living room where she grabbed her earphones from her bag before slumping onto the sofa. She knew what was coming.

"Oh, Alex." Piper could hear Sylvia giggling wildly. She knew Alex's game was jealousy and she really wasn't going to rise to it, she wouldn't be the first to crack. She put her earphones in and turned up 'Girl Crush by Little Big Town'. A fitting song for her mood right now. She just hoped that Elizabeth was already in a deep sleep so she wouldn't have to listen to the nonsense that was going on in the room next to her.

-0-0-0-0-0-

When Alex emerged from her room over an hour later, Piper was fast asleep on the sofa. The blonde appeared to be shivering as she gripped onto her phone, earphones still stuck in. The raven-haired girl took pity on her and threw the blanket that was resting on the back of the sofa, over her before Sylvie emerged from the bedroom.

"Alex, I can't..."

Sylvie was interrupted by Alex. "Shhhh, Piper." She stated simply as she pointed at the sleeping body on the sofa.

Alex's girlfriend reduced her words to a whisper. "I can't find my jacket."

"Here borrow mine, you will be fine." Alex whispered back as she threw Sylvie a dark green hoodie.

The pair crept out of the apartment so as not to wake Piper, the odds of her forgetting the entire situation were much higher if she didn't wake up and see them for a second time that night.

Piper didn't wake up until Diane returned home an hour after Alex had left.

Diane smiled to herself as she heard the tinny music playing from Piper's earphones and saw her curled up under the blanket on the sofa. She shook her gently.

"Piper, come on honey, wake up now."

Piper opened one eye and was surprised to see the oldest Vause standing over her .

"You can sleep here for the night if you are really that tired honey, I don't mind."

Piper rubbed at her eyes and sat up, her earphones fell out as she sat up.

"Thanks anyway but I'm going to say no, my mom will be wondering where I am, plus I don't think Alex would appreciate that."

Diane offered her hand to Piper to help her stand up which Piper tentatively took.

"Will you and that girl ever get on?"

Piper shrugged before yawning again. "I guess not." The blonde didn't really want that to be the truth but at the minute it seemed like it was.

Diane walked over to the breakfast bar to retrieve her purse to pay Piper for the night but a she reached the counter Piper had said her goodbye and left the apartment.

Diane tutted. "That girl has got to stop leaving without getting payed." She thought to herself. Piper seemed to be the master of that recently.

-0-0-0-0-0-

It was Wednesday before Piper knew it, she had been texting Lucy everyday since they made the date. The blonde was certain that she would know exactly the right things to say so as not to screw the first date up.

She wasn't sure exactly what time Diane was expecting her to arrive at the apartment but Piper thought that early was most definitely better than late, whenever late was.

Piper had successfully been avoiding her mother for the past few days because she really didn't fancy answering all the awkward questions like 'Why have you got a black eye?'. Today seemed to be her unlucky day as she grabbed her backpack stuffed with smaller bags and attempted to head out of the door. It was only three o'clock and her mother was already drunk, thankfully it was the holidays and so both of the boys were out, Cal was at a sleepover and Danny now spent ninety percent of his time out of the house, he too had coined onto the fact his mother was quickly becoming an alcoholic. Piper made her way to the front door just as her mother emerged from the living room.

"Where do you think you are going Piper?" Carol waved a bottle around which she held by the neck.

Piper took a deep breath in and lifted her chin, she really didn't want to show her mom that right now at this very moment, fear was rooting her to the ground. The sight of the bottle made Piper tremble slightly, she felt sick to the stomach.

"Babysitting." Piper stated.

"It's Wednesday, you don't usually babysit on a Wednesday." Carol leaned her unsteady body against the door frame to the living room and Piper relaxed a little.

"Diane had to cover a shift so I'm babysitting." There were no more questions, Carol just narrowed her eyes and Piper spun on her heel and made a swift exit.

The mark around Piper's eye had subsided enough for her to easily cover it with foundation. She didn't put any other make up on, she was leaving that to Diane's clearly capable hands. The blonde was actually excited for her little makeover. She never grew up with a sister she could do make up with and when Piper stopped doing ballet, she stopped being Carol's perfect little girl and so she lost everything that came along with that like how to do your make up and curl you hair.

There was one variant in this whole situation and that was Alex Vause. The blonde pondered whether she would be at work or not and whether she would react kindly to Piper's presence in her home.

Nevertheless, Piper couldn't contain her excitement for the evening. Alex Vause certainly wasn't going to ruin this night for Piper. The blonde sat at the back of the bus mouthing the words to her favorite song 'The power of love by Gabrielle Aplin' squeezing her phone tight in her hand.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper tapped on the door lightly and Elizabeth yanked the door open.

"She's here mom!" Elizabeth yelled.

Diane stepped out of her bedroom looking glamorous as always. She was putting in a pair of earrings and she was wearing a floor length purple silk dress, it looked as if she was going on a date.

Piper stepped into the apartment and put her backpack down on the sofa.

"Take a seat at the breakfast bar honey and I will be with you shortly."

Piper was now very aware of the array of make up and nail polish and hair products that adorned the counter top.

"Wow, you really are serious about your beauty products aren't you?"

Diane gave a nod before instructing Elizabeth to go and put her dress on. The whole family seemed to be dressing up for the occasion apart from one.

Diane took the seat next to Piper at the breakfast bar and carefully inspected her face, lifting her chin slightly with her thumb. She hummed approvingly and then asked Piper to follow her into her bedroom.

"We have to pick out a dress for you before we can even start your hair and make up." Diane said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Piper followed obediently and perched herself at the end of Diane's bed. The blonde had never stepped foot in this room before and it was far above any expectations that Piper could have ever held for the room. The silver perfectly accented the purple in the room, the entire room, or boudoir as Piper felt it best to call it, was immaculate, the wooden floorboards painted white, every side was perfectly dusted and the full length mirrors that adorned each of the wardrobe doors made the room seem immensely bigger.

Piper noted two pictures, one on each of the matching bedside tables either side of the bed, one was of Diane and a young girl she presumed was Alex but was almost unrecognizable with her blonde long hair tied up in to pigtails, her two front teeth missing but she was grinning never the less. The picture on the other side of the bed was of Diane, Alex and Elizabeth sitting on a bench, Alex was perched on the top of the backrest of the bench, Diane sat on the white wooden bench with Elizabeth sat in between her legs. The blonde made a mental note to ask Diane who took the picture.

"So there is the black dress, the red dress or the green dress." Piper shrugged, she really had no idea which one to choose, they all looked so pretty.

"Not the green one." Diane nodded at Piper's comment and placed the dress back in the wardrobe.

"I'm a princess!" Elizabeth squealed as she danced into her mom's bedroom.

"Yes you are!" Piper replied, a little too enthusiastic, even for her own liking.

"Beautiful darling, now help Piper, the red dress or the black dress?" She held them both up and Elizabeth climbed onto the high bed.

"Ooh, the red one. The red one is way pretty, It'll make Alex jealous." Elizabeth was now jumping on the bed, it was clear that she too was very excited for the evening.

"The red one it is then." Diane said with a giggle, she threw a wink in Elizabeth's direction and Elizabeth squeezed both of her eyes tight shut and then opened them wide in what Piper could only assume was an attempted wink.

The blonde figured that the pair were up to something but she grew up with the same expression running through her head 'don't ask the question if you are scared of what the answer will be'.

Diane put the black dress back away in the wardrobe and hung the red dress on the coat hook that adorned the back of the door. She then walked over to a little jewelery cupboard on long legs that sat in the corner of the room next to her beauty dresser. She pulled out a red rosary that when worn would dip down just grazing her cleavage and a pair of rose earrings. Diane shook her head and put the rosary back then pulled out a rose necklace that matched the earrings. She fumbled in the first draw down, pushing multiple boxes aside with her hands until she found a dark red box with a gold band around it. She opened the box, nodded at the contents and then closed it again.

"Right Piper, heels or flats?" Diane asked as she walked back over to the closet and fumbled in the bottom.

"Heels please."

Diane pulled out a pair of black heels and a pair of black flats.

"Put the heels on with the dress and put the flats in the bag you take with you, you never know where this date is going to take you."

Piper smiled and nodded.

"I have a large red bag with a black ribbon strap, do you think that would go?"

"Sounds perfect dear, you can show me in a minute." Diane gestured to Elizabeth to get off the bed and she did as she was silently told to do. Piper too stood up and Diane straightened out the covers on her bed before laying the dress that she had hung up onto the bed, she placed the earrings, necklace and box onto the dress and placed the black heels at the foot of the bed.

"Come on then Piper, lets glam you up." Diane said shimmying her shoulders as she left the room.

Piper followed obediently and took a seat next to Diane at the breakfast bar.

It was almost three hours later when Diane had completed Piper's look.

The blonde sported a smokey eyed look with bold black eyeliner creating wings at the edge of her eyes, her cheeks remained a subtle skin tone but her lips popped with a dark red lip liner blending into a lighter shade of red lipstick as her lips met. Her hair was curled and then tied back into a messy bun with a loose curl hanging from each side of her face in front of her ears. Her nails were painted entirely red except for her ring finger nails which were painted half and half black and red split diagonally.

Piper looked at herself in the small handheld mirror that Diane had passed to her and smiled, she hadn't appreciated her own reflection in a long time.

"Wow, Diane, I just don't know what to say, thank you I guess would be a good start..."

"Piper dear, you are rambling again, you haven't seen the half of it yet, go and get dressed whilst I tidy this up, Lucy will be here any minute now."

Meanwhile, Alex was tucked away in her bedroom toying with the piece of paper she held in her hand, she finally got the guts to text the number.

TO: GIRL AT PARTY

HEY, GOT YOUR PAPER, WHAT'S IT ALL ABOUT?

1 NEW MESSAGE - GIRL AT PARTY

JOB OFFER, IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, PAID ON COMMISSION, COULD EARN THOUSANDS A WEEK IF YOU ARE GOOD. WILL TAKE YOU TRAVELING. INVOLVES ILLEGAL ACTIVITY.

TO: GIRL AT PARTY

WOW SOUNDS FUN, I'LL GET BACK TO YOU ON THAT ONE, MAYBE WE COULD TALK IT OVER OVER A COFFEE SOMETIME?

1 NEW MESSAGE - GIRL AT PARTY

YEAH SURE, I'LL TEXT YOU IN THE WEEK, I'M A BIT BUSY RIGHT NOW.

Alex threw her phone down on the bed beside her and fought the idea that she was thirsty. If she wanted a drink then that would mean going out to the living room/kitchen area where she knew Piper was. She had heard her incessant giggling earlier on and she was regretting telling Piper that she was welcome anytime.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper stepped out of the bedroom and into the hallway, she was dressed in strapless red dress that cinched in at the waist and flowed nicely all the way to the floor, it had a slit up the left hand side revealing Piper's leg up to her thigh as she walked. It complimented her cleavage with a sweetheart neckline that was adorned with diamantes. She wore the five inch matt black heels with pride and she walked with exaggerated confidence.

The blonde finished her outfit with a rose necklace that clasped at the back, each rose matched the one on the other side, slowly getting bigger as they dipped past her collarbone, the biggest rose of all joined the two rows and from that rose hung a pear shaped black gem.

The earrings matched the necklace and were the same size as the smallest rose on the necklace. The ring though was by far Piper's favorite part of the outfit, it was made of silver and was a collection of what looked like vines and rose stems all intermingled and connected, she wore it on her right hand ring finger.

"You look beautiful Piper." Diane placed her hands over her mouth, she looked as if she was going to cry.

"It's all thanks to you Diane." Piper blushed a brilliant shade of pink.

"And me!" Elizabeth exclaimed, slightly saddened to be partially excluded from this moment of joy.

"I don't have a jacket." Piper stated, her eyes shooting wide.

"Don't panic, here borrow one of Alex's jackets, I'm sure she won't mind, she has let you borrow them before."

Diane grabbed a jacket from the coat hook and threw it over the back of the sofa and stuffed the flat black shoes into Piper's chosen bag.

"Lucy should be here any moment." Diane stated looking at the clock.

"I can't wait to meet her." It was already past Elizabeth's bedtime but considering it was the holidays and this was a special occasion, Diane had let her stay up.

"Please don't panic me." Piper stated, she was trying to remain calm but her stomach was doing somersaults, she would be lying she said she hadn't thought about bailing at least twice tonight.

Just as Piper finished speaking Alex came out of her bedroom wearing a plain black tee with three quarter sleeves and grey slacks rolled up to just under her knees.

"Hey Alex." Piper said, her new found confidence spilling over.

Alex swore to herself before she let her room that she wouldn't even acknowledge Piper, that plan went wrong as soon as she spoke.

"Piper... erm... wow..." She stumbled over her words as she took in the glorious sight that was Piper Chapman. "Shit." She thought to herself. "Pull yourself together Alex."

"You look ... nice."

"Nice?" Diane scolded. "You couldn't think of a better word than nice?"

"Erm... Pretty." Alex stated as she pulled the orange juice from the fridge.

The three were interrupted b a knock on the door.

"That must be her." Diane said as she straightened out her dress, Elizabeth stood beside her and mimicked her actions. Alex just looked confused.

Piper calmly opened the door.

"Hey Lucy."

"Hey Piper, these are for you." Lucy commented as she passed Piper a perfectly wrapped bunch of twelve roses.

"Thank you, they're beautiful. Let me just put these in some water and grab my jacket and we will be good to go." Piper began walking away and then turned back. "Step inside Lucy. Lucy this is everyone and everyone this is Lucy, my date."

Piper swore she saw Alex's jaw hit the floor as she walked into the kitchen area and grabbed a glass.

Diane and Elizabeth were busy making their introductions in the living room area.

Alex grabbed Piper by the wrist.

"Seriously, this again Alex?"

"Sorry, force of habit." She dropped Pipers wrist and looked her in the eyes. She swore she had never noticed how blue they were before now. "You aren't seriously going on a date with her are you?"

Piper almost tutted before she stopped herself. "You didn't seriously think all of this was for you did you?" She joked.

"I wish it was." Alex thought to herself, but what she said was in fact very different. "I just thought you guys were having some sort of princess party."

Piper rolled her eyes again as she filled the glass with water.

"You really need to stop doing that Piper, it really isn't lady like."

She placed the glass down on the side in front of Alex and kissed her on the cheek.

"Be a doll and look after these for me please Alex."

With that Piper turned on her heel and walked away with a little more confidence than was necessary.

Diane held Alex's jacket open for Piper to put her arms in, Piper placed her bag on her shoulder before bending down to give Elizabeth a kiss on the cheek and then stood and repeated the motion with Diane.

"Have fun tonight girls." Diane yelled down the corridor as the pair walked away.

Until Piper left the apartment Alex didn't realize how much she had been staring.

"Wait, was that my jacket?" Alex questioned as she pointed towards the door.

"Yeah, I figured you wouldn't mind since you leaned her one before."Diane commented.

"It's about as close as you are going to get to dating Piper." Elizabeth joked.

Alex was almost fuming now.

"Elizabeth!" Diane scolded teasingly, the young girl could tell that she didn't mean it.

Alex just stormed off back to her bedroom with her glass of juice in hand without saying another word.

Diane and Elizabeth waited for the familiar sound of the bedroom door shutting before the pair high-fived each other.

"She's jealous alright." Diane commented as Elizabeth ran over to the CD player, she skipped a few songs and settled on track 7. 'I kissed a girl by Katy Perry' blasted through the speakers so loudly that they didn't hear Alex throw a pillow at her bedroom door.

"We did a good job kid." Diane yelled over the music and the biggest smile she had ever seen spread across Elizabeth's face.

A/N: Once again a big thank you to I3VauseMan for her wonderful ideas, compliments and encouragement. I hope you enjoyed and please leave a review, they truly make my day.


	20. Chapter 18

A/N: This whole chapter is dedicated to I3VauseMan because she is my WonderWoman and the Watson to my Sherlock. Good luck finding your easter egg M, there is a lyric from a song you suggested to me in there and a film suggestion too :) happy hunting. This chapter is mega short but I thought you all deserved a little bit of VauseMan after my torturous last chapter. So enjoy.

 **CHAPTER EIGHTEEN**

Lucy and Piper sat awkwardly at the table, their meal and date in general had been wonderful so far, Piper could have seen herself falling for this girl easily but now, after Lucy dropped that bombshell, she couldn't even see herself through to the end of the date.

"Erm.. what did you say?" Piper asked as she almost choked on her drink.

"I was wondering if you would perhaps want to come and work for me?"

"No, the thing before that."

"Oh, I run an international traveling brothel company."

Piper really didn't know what to say to that so she paused for a moment trying to gather her thoughts. Lucy didn't even look concerned by Piper's reaction, it all seemed a bit rehearsed for the blonde to comprehend.

"So all of this..." Piper placed her glass down onto the table and gestured to the spread that interrupted the table before them. "...was just to offer me a job as a prostitute?"

"Wasn't that clear?"

Piper shook her head in disbelief. "I can't believe you."

Lucy didn't even make a move to follow Piper as she got up and left the restaurant.

Piper couldn't cry, she couldn't scream, she was too confused to think of anything right now, all she knew was that she didn't want to go home right now, it was only an hour into the date and her mom wasn't expecting her home from 'babysitting' yet. That left her with one choice, the Vause's apartment.

The blonde stepped towards the pavement and away from the shelter that the building was providing, she hadn't noticed before now but it was raining, heavily. All Piper could do was roll her eyes and hitch Alex's jacket up over her head. She headed to the nearest bus stop and caught the first bus that would take her anywhere near where she wanted to be but not before she had been splashed by a few passing cars. Diane's dress was soaking wet, Piper's make up was ruined and she was beyond thankful for the flat shoes that Diane had slipped into her bag.

It took a while for Piper to finally knock on the door to the apartment as she was mentally cursing herself for crawling back here. She finally knocked and was very surprised to see Alex standing at the other side of the door.

"Date that bad huh?" She questioned as she stood amused by the wet Piper that stood before her.

"Please let me in Alex."

Alex stepped aside to let Piper in. "Hang my jacket on the coat hook, I'll be right back."

Piper did as she was instructed, she shivered madly after she took the jacket off. She crossed her arms over each other rubbing the opposing upper arm.

The blonde didn't want to move for fear of getting water everywhere, she wasn't sure if Diane was going to be mad at her for getting the dress wet so she didn't really want to take the risk of making her whole apartment wet too. Piper scanned her eyes around the room awkwardly and she caught sight of her roses perfectly arranged in a vase out of their wrapper, she wasn't entirely sure whether Alex was to thank or Diane, she assumed the latter though.

"Here you go." Alex said as she presented Piper with a pile of folded clothes.

Piper immediately noticed the same grey slacks and t-shirt that she had worn the first time she turned up at the apartment soaking wet.

"There is the slacks you wore last time, clean and fresh, and a pair of boxers and a hoodie, both optional wear, I just assumed you would be soaked through." Alex didn't like to admit that she had not stopped thinking about getting Piper out of her clothes since she saw her in that stunning red dress earlier on tonight.

"Thanks." Piper replied still not wanting to move. The pair stood face to face awkwardly silent for a moment as eyes searched eyes looking for something that neither of them were sure was even there. The blonde was the first to divert her eyes.

"Erm... Go change in the bathroom and we an talk about your disastrous date afterwards if you like. "

Piper just nodded and headed to the bathroom. She stripped down, threw the dress over the shower curtain pole and placed her bra and underwear over the radiator. She slipped the boxers on that Alex had provided her with and stopped for a minute to contemplate why Alex owned what appeared to be men's boxers. Dismissing the thought from her head she carried on getting dressed.

"Are you okay Piper, you've been in there a while now." Alex tapped gently on the bathroom door.

"Yeah." Piper took her hair down and gently towel dried it at the ends. "Coming." She pushed the door open so that Alex could see her as she dried the floor where she had stood with a towel.

Alex raised an eyebrow at the sight of the matching black lace underwear set that hung over the radiator. "Nice underwear."

Tonight had been way too exhausting for Piper to come up with some quick quip to put Alex in her place. "Thanks." She said dryly. She hung the towel over the side of the bath and exited the bathroom before heading back to the living room.

"Do you wanna watch a movie?" Alex asked as she squatted down in front of a cabinet containing DVD's.

Piper slumped down onto the sofa, tucked her knees up under her chin and stretched the hoodie over them and then tucked it under her feet. "Sure. Isn't your mom home?"

"No, she had to work a late shift tonight, my company not good enough for you?"

"I guess you'll do." Piper said with a yawn.

Alex turned around and attempted to look offended. "Rude." She noticed that Piper had bundled herself inside the hoodie. "If your feet were cold you could of just asked for socks."

"Sorry." Piper gushed pulling her knees out o the now stretched hoodie.

"Don't worry about it kid, do what you like."

Piper nodded slowly, she had had an exhausting night and she was almost fighting her eyelids in an attempt to stop them from shutting. Alex ran her fingers over the spines of the DVD cases as she attempted to choose one.

"Have you got 'The Longest Ride'?" Piper asked as she squinted at the cabinet.

"As a matter of fact we do, I really hate romance movies but considering your evening has been less than thrilling so far then I guess I should let you at least have this."

Piper hummed in approval as Alex put the disc in the player.

Alex grabbed the remote and sat on the sofa next to Piper.

"Are you going to tell me all about your shit date before you fall asleep then?" She asked.

Piper leaned her weight to one side and lowered herself to the sofa placing her head on Alex's lap.

"I guess so."

Alex looked down at Piper but chose not to argue with the placement of her head, she could sit here with Piper and just forget the world for a moment. "Go on."

"Well, turns out Lucy just wanted me to be her bitch."

"What's so bad about that?" Alex asked, taking the sentence with a pinch of salt and not literally as Piper had intended it.

"Seriously Alex." Piper shifted onto her back and pulled her knees out from the hoodie stretching them over the end of the sofa, she was no longer paying attention to what was on the television and instead was focusing solely upon Alex. "She wanted me to work for her traveling international brothel company! The whole date was just a set up so she could woo me and then take advantage of me."

Alex's eyes widened at hearing the conversation, she was suppose to be meeting this girl for coffee later on in the week to discuss a possible job opportunity, this was not what she had in mind although due to the short nature of the dress that Lucy was wearing when she turned up to the pick Piper up earlier, she should have guessed.

"What?" Piper asked, gaging Alex's reaction to the statement.

"You would make a terrible prostitute." Alex giggled gently.

Piper half heartedly slapped Alex's thigh with the back of her hand. "Rude." Piper rolled onto her side again to face the TV, she tucked her knees in and placed her hands in a prayer position under herself between her head and Alex's thigh.

"You looked amazing tonight though." Alex let her right hand wander down to play with Piper's hair, her left hand was thrown over the back of the sofa. She marveled at the feel of the whole situation not a bit seemed forged or awkward. Alex felt relaxed and serene, she could almost say she felt at home with Piper as if this was what love as supposed to feel like. She definitely wasn't going to say she was in love with Piper but she was definitely feeling something; something she couldn't deny was there.

"Thank you." Piper whispered, her voice was barely audible as she was drifting off to sleep.

After a few minutes Alex stopped playing with Piper's hair, she was met with a grumble from Piper and so she carried on until she too was almost asleep.

"Bedtime kid." Alex whispered as the credits rolled. The raven-haired girl slowly shifted herself from underneath Piper and turned the TV off. "Let's get you to bed." She whispered as she gently wedged her hands underneath Piper, lifting her slowly and carefully before walking into her bedroom and tucking her into bed.

Alex headed back to the living room and grabbed a blanket off of the back of the sofa and threw it over herself as she closed her eyes. "I probably could have left her here." She thought to herself as she replayed the night in her head. It would be one that Alex would remember for a while, for more than one reason. Tonight was the night that she finally realized that she had to have Piper, she was in fact falling for Piper Chapman, the blonde haired WASPy babysitter. And she was going to do nothing to stop it.

A/N: Did you like my little twist? No drugs cartel just as you all requested. Sorry it's so short but I thought you all deserved this little update, it's just a filler chapter as Elizabeth's birthday is coming up soon. Please leave a review, I love reading them :)


	21. Chapter 19

A/N: Happy update. I rushed this one to get it finished in time for a certain someone but I hope it's okay for you all, I enjoyed writing it so I hope you enjoy reading it. Its a drama free chapter! Thank you all for your wonderful reviews, they give me inspiration and help me when I write the next chapter. (M, look for your easter eggs, they are obvious this time and in the form of songs.) I look forward to your reviews and thoughts on the chapter.

 **CHAPTER NINETEEN**

As Diane walked through the door she was a little surprised to see Alex asleep on the sofa, she shook her gently to wake her.

"Alex, honey, you fell asleep on the sofa, go to bed or you will get a bad back."

Alex grumbled and rolled onto her back to face her mom who was standing over her.

"Piper's in my bed."

"Alex? Seriously?"

"God, no mom, long story, bad date, I'll tell you in the morning." With that Alex rolled over again and Diane disappeared off to her bedroom but not before sticking her head in though Alex's bedroom door checking that Piper was in fact in there and that she was okay. She worried about Piper as if she was one of her own. Now her dad was gone she needed someone and Diane decided that it would be her. She smiled as she saw Piper lying there, fast asleep in Alex's clothes.

"There's hope for them yet." She thought to herself as she walked away and into her own bedroom.

As Piper awoke the next day, confused and hot she darted her eyes around the room. She knew that this room was vaguely familiar but she couldn't quite put a name to the belongings, that was until she rolled over to look at the posters that spanned the walls, she noticed a familiar white bear with an embroidered holly hock on its foot.

"Alex." She whispered to herself as she remembered the events of last night. Piper couldn't find her phone anywhere but she knew it was early as the room was still dark. She soon figured that she must have left it on the coffee table in the living room.

The blonde carefully walked across the creaky painted white floorboards in Alex's room and over to the door, she wondered for a while where Alex was sleeping and she eventually came to the assumption that she must have left to go and sleep at Sylvie's house. She balled her fists as she creeped quietly through the house to the living room. Piper was beyond surprised to see Alex curled up in a blanket on the sofa when she reached for her mobile phone.

"Piper?" Alex asked without opening her eyes.

"Yeah Alex?" Piper questioned back.

"Piper looked beautiful mom, red really is her color."

Piper bit her lip to fight back a laugh, she didn't take Alex as a sleep talker.

"Is it honey?" Piper questioned doing her best Diane impression.

"Yeah, you know what mom?"

"What honey?"

"She's prettier than Sylvia, but don't tell Sylvia, or Piper."

"I won't, don't worry"

Alex then mumbled something incoherent and inaudible which Piper assumed was "Thank you."

Piper shook her head in disbelief as she grabbed her phone and checked the time, the screen lit up the whole room and the light stirred Alex from her sleep.

"What the fuck Piper, what time is it?"

"Erm... two minutes past four." Piper whispered, Alex didn't seem in the best of moods, she definitely wasn't an early riser.

"Shit Pipes, go back to bed."

Piper suddenly gained some courage, or stupidity, she wasn't sure which. "Only if you come with me."

"What?" Alex asked, unsure if she'd heard correctly.

"It's nothing like that, just come to bed with me, its a double bed and you'll get back ache lying here." Piper reasoned with Alex, trying to make it sound if they were genuine reasons and not just excuses.

"Fine." Alex said, trying to make herself seem exasperated by the situation and not at all pleased by Piper's offer.

The screen to Piper's iPhone went black and a small spiraling icon signified that it was completely empty of charge. "Shit." Piper commented as she recognize the symbol.

"Shit." Alex commented as she smacked her knee on the coffee table trying to get around it.

"Careful." Piper whispered as she grabbed Alex's hand. "This way."

"I know my way around my own apartment Pipes." Alex spoke a little too loudly for Piper's liking.

"Shh, you'll wake your mom and sister."

"I've heard that one before." Alex commented with a suggestive intonation in her voice. She had stopped feeling tired the moment Piper's hand touched hers.

"Shh, now let's get to bed." Piper pushed the door to Alex's bedroom open gently and then let go of her hand.

Alex swore she had never felt more empty than in that exact moment. Her hand felt cold as Piper pulled away and climbed into bed. The raven-haired girl stood in awe as Piper pulled off the over sized hoodie and large grey slacks and threw them to the floor. Alex let her mind wander for a moment as she imagined Piper in her boxers.

"You coming?" Piper asked as she noticed Alex staring.

"Uh, yeah." Alex replied as she pushed the door closed gently. She blindly felt her way to her usual side of the bed but was surprised when she fell upon a soft arm.

"Alex, that's my arm." Piper stated.

"Piper, that's my side of the bed." Alex retorted. She lifted the sheets as she crawled in, Piper shuffled over to the other side of the bed and the pair laid in silence for a while.

"Well that's the first time anyone has ever dragged me to a bedroom by the hand and it's not resulted in sex." Alex stated, unsure of anything else to say, she usually only had women in her bed for sexual reasons, she made Nicky sleep on floor or the sofa, or Alex slept on the floor or sofa when she stayed over. She didn't even share a bed with Sylvia to sleep.

"Well you know what they say, there's a first time for everything."

The pair fell silent once again but it was comfortable as always, something was different with Piper, or was it everything? Alex let her mind wander and she was ignorant to Piper's presence after a while until she rolled over and mumbled. The raven-haired girl let out a grin that spread from ear to ear as she too rolled over, her knee brushing the back of Piper's thigh up to the material of the boxers, it was entirely unintentional but it pleased Alex. She took a deep breath and rolled over the other way to face away from Piper. She wore the biggest smile as she fell asleep that night.

Piper barely slept that night and she was just about conscious when Diane poked her head through the door after noticing that Alex was no longer asleep on the sofa as she had been hours earlier. The light from the hallway flooded through the gap in the door that Diane had created.

"Oh, sorry Piper did I wake you?" She questioned s she noticed Piper's arms move to shield her eyes.

"No, it's okay Alex sleep talks, she's a mumbler."

Diane laughed. "Yeah, always has been, have you got any sense out of her yet?"

"Yeah." Piper said as she stepped out of bed, she completely forgot that she was wearing nothing but Alex's Ramones t-shirt and a pair of American Apparel boxers.

As Piper glanced over at Diane, she noted the surprise on her face. "I was warm." The blonde commented nonchalantly as she walked over to the corner of the room where the slacks and over sized hoodie lay.

"Well Piper, I have to go to work in about an hour, care to join me for a coffee on the sofa? You can tell me all about your disastrous date."

Piper paused as she headed towards the door. "How did you know?" She questioned.

"Alex." Diane stated as if that could be the answer to everyone of Piper's questions.

Piper nodded.

"Don't tell Piper though mom, you promised." Alex mumbled barely audible as she pressed her face into the pillow.

The pair didn't dignify Alex with a response, they just laughed and the blonde pulled the door closed behind her.

As they sat on the sofa with their freshly made coffee and spoke about the disastrous date. Piper didn't leave out a single detail.

Eventually curiosity got the better of Diane. "You said you heard Alex talking, what did she say?"

Piper blushed a little, she wasn't expecting Diane to ask but she would never lie to Diane. "She was talking to you actually, she told me, well you, that Piper is prettier than Sylvia, but apparently you aren't allowed to tell me or Sylvia."

The oldest Vause laughed loudly as Piper finished speaking. "I guess that explains the comment she made as you left the room."

"I guess so." Piper said as she drank the last of her now cold coffee.

"Oops, better get going to work. Could you stay until I get back as Alex doesn't wake up till dinner time, she doesn't know I have to work this morning, she's really not an early riser."

"I figured." Piper answered remembering the events that occurred as of four o'clock the same morning.

"I'll pay you of course." Diane said as she placed her mug in the kitchen.

"Don't be so silly, consider it payment for letting me stay over." Piper turned and leaned her arm over the back of the sofa as she spoke to Diane.

"Girl, please. I should be paying you for that too, no one should have to share a bed with Alex." After a long explanation from Piper earlier that morning Diane had been brought up to date with the events occurring early from when she left for the date all the way up to the events that lad to the pair in Alex's bed, she didn't want the woman getting the wrong idea.

"She's quite courteous you know."

Diane laughed at what Piper had said. "If you say so. Oh, and Piper could you possibly make pancakes with Elizabeth this morning. I promised her I would. She probably won't be up for some hours yet, she had a late night last night."

Piper nodded. "Sure, not a problem." With that Diane disappeared into her bedroom and Piper turned on the TV.

The oldest Vause emerged a few minutes later looking more than a little glamorous for her job at Wendy's.

"You look lovely today." Piper said as Diane walked into the kitchen are looking for her keys.

"This uniform is not flattering dear." Diane did a mock spin as Piper watched on, enviously.

The natural brunette grabbed her keys and bag and went to walk out of the door before Piper called out to stop her.

The blonde walked over to where Diane was standing near the open door. "Thank you for everything Diane, have a good day at work."

Diane smiled from ear to ear. "No, thank you Piper." She said as she leaned down slightly to kiss the blonde on the forehead.

It was Piper's turn to smile now. Diane disappeared through the door and Piper shut it behind her, she was happy to stay, she was in no rush to get back home.

It was a while before Elizabeth woke up and for the most part they sat on the sofa playing clapping games and singing songs until Piper decided that it was late enough in the day to crank the stereo up and start making pancakes.

Alex awoke around lunch time to an empty bed. Piper was no longer there. The raven-haired girl furrowed her brow and looked around the room, she noticed that the slacks and over sized hoodie that the blonde had thrown into the corner of the room had now gone. She reached for her glasses off of the bedside table and swung her legs out of the bed.

As Alex reached for the door handle she could hear singing. She smiled to herself and then opened the door, she stepped out of her bed room and leaned herself against the hallway door frame. The raven-hared girl marveled at the sight before her. Elizabeth was sat on the counter of the breakfast bar wearing a nightie and dressing gown swinging her legs and singing her heart out as Piper wiggled her bum and sang to the music.

"She's kinda hot though, yeah, she's kinda hot though." The pair sang together, Piper was holding a mixing bowl and stirring vigorously which made her bum shake a little more. Alex was entranced.

"I could get used to this." Alex spoke when she finally pulled her eyes away from Piper.

Piper remained calm in the situation and didn't jump like Elizabeth did.

"Oh, finally crawled out of bed did we sleeping beauty?" Piper didn't even turn around to speak, it was as if she knew Alex was there the entire time and she was purposely taunting her with her dancing and appropriate choice of songs. "You want some pancakes? Me and Liz are making some." Piper twirled around now to face the direction of the hallway. Elizabeth remained quiet whilst she watched the pair's interactions.

Alex pulled her signature smirk and pushed herself off of the wall with her shoulder. She kept her arms crossed until she walked towards Piper when she unfolded them to dip her finger into the pancake batter. Piper batted her hand away but she had scooped some up already. "Yes please." Alex commented as she swiped Piper's nose with the batter covered finger. The blonde scrunched her nose up as she felt the coldness of the mixture on her nose.

The raven-haired girl smiled as she licked the remaining mixture off of her own finger and walked over to the stereo skipping a few tracks on the 5 SOS CD until one of her favorite tracks played. 'She's so perfect'. She then went and sat at the breakfast bar.

"Where's mom, she have to work?"

"Yeah, she said she'd be back just after twelve so she should be back any minute now." just as Piper went to grab the ladle from the utensils Diane walked through the door.

"There's my three favorite girls." Diane said as she stepped into the apartment.

Elizabeth jumped down off of the counter and ran to her mom to give her a big hug.

"She got you domesticated already Piper?" Diane asked as she approached the breakfast bar.

"Elizabeth has yes." She commented knowing full well that Diane meant Alex.

"What about this one?" The oldest Vause asked as she pressed a hand against Alex's back.

"Not yet."

"I think it's fair to say you've got Alex here domesticated, given that she gave up her bed for you last night."

Piper blushed at Diane's words, it was kind of true.

The youngest Vause joined the Alex and Diane at the breakfast bar and they all sat down watching as Piper danced her way through making pancakes, she made everyones favorite's, Diane had blueberry pancakes, Elizabeth had chocolate chip with whipped cream in the shape of hearts and Alex had strawberry pancakes with whipped cream. Alex grumbled as she received her pancakes. "No hearts for me Pipes?" She questioned.

"You aren't six Alex." Piper stated calmly trying not to get flustered like she usually did hen she heard the nickname.

Alex didn't reply she just simply raised her eyebrow in the signature Vause look.

Elizabeth stuck her tongue out at Alex. "I'm seven in six days."

"Yes you are kid." Alex replied as she stuffed pancake into her mouth.

"Alex, please, try and be a lady."

Elizabeth and Piper burst out laughing at Diane's comment, they knew that no matter how hard Diane tried Alex would never be a lady.

After Piper finished her own strawberry and white chocolate chip pancakes she sat down at the breakfast bar alongside the three Vause's and began eating. All was silent for a while before Diane finally spoke up.

"Piper Vause, I like it." Alex and Piper's head tuned to Diane so quickly their heads almost snapped off of their shoulders.

"When you are in this house, you are a Vause." Diane explained. "You truly are one of the family, and you're good at making pancakes so if nothing else we'll keep you around for making pancakes."

The group laughed and finished their pancakes. Diane had promised to take Elizabeth to the park so she went to get changed. Elizabeth disappeared into her bedroom to get changed and Piper grabbed her bag from the corner of the room which held her clothes that she had worn the night before.

"I'll go and get changed in the bathroom." Piper said as Alex approached her own bedroom door.

"No, it's okay, I'm gonna jump in the shower anyway so you just get changed in my room, unless you want a shower that is?" Alex was stumbling slightly over her words, she didn't fully understand the protocol for getting changed in front of someone who you haven't had sex with. She also didn't want it to sound as if she was inviting Piper into the shower with her, she didn't frown at the idea but she did feel slightly self conscious after seeing Piper's damn amazing runner's legs last night.

"Okay, I'll get dressed in your room, you go have a shower."

Alex nodded but opened the door to her room for Piper before wandering off into the bathroom.

"So you can be a lady." Piper called after her.

Alex smiled as she walked away, not that Piper could see.

Piper attempted to check the time on her phone but she quickly remembered that it had gone dead, she took a look at the wires that stretched from the extension cable that she had almost tripped over the night before. She found the one that fit her phone and plugged it in, she dropped it onto the bed and left it to charge as she got dressed. It wasn't long before Piper had discovered her mistake, she hadn't planned on staying over and so there was no spare pair of underwear or clean bra in her bag, they were n the bathroom, hanging over the radiator drying. She couldn't go in because Alex was showering.

The blonde took a deep breath and thought about the situation for a moment, she could use this to her advantage.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Ten minutes later Piper was sitting on Alex's bed fully clothed scrolling through the 12 missed calls and 17 text messages all from Polly asking where she was, telling her that her mother was concerned. Piper knew that was a lie, if she really as concerned then surely she would have rang Piper herself. She dropped Polly a simple text saying 'Babysitting, overnight shift, I'll be home later.' She thought that would suffice.

As the blonde threw her phone back onto the bed Alex walked into the room, a towel wrapped around her waist and one around her head. "Did you forget something Piper?" Alex asked clearly hiding something behind her back.

Piper played it cool. "No, I don't think so."

"Your underwear maybe?"

"No, got mine right here." Piper commented pulling the waistband on her jeans down slightly revealing a pair of Alex's underwear.

Alex bit her lip and smiled playing along with the game.

"Maybe you're missing a certain black lace bra?"

"Nope, got mine right here." Piper pulled down the sleeve of her vest top to reveal one of Alex's black lace bras.

"I guess these must be mine then." Alex commented with a smirk playing across her face.

"Must be." Piper threw Alex her attempt at a signature Vause look.

The raven-haired girl threw the black lace set at Piper and sat down on the bed next to her.

"Just wash them and bring them back." She laughed.

"Aye, aye captain." Piper threw Alex a playful wink and a salute.

At that moment Piper's phone rang. The caller ID read 'She-Devil' and in brackets underneath it read 'Mom'.

Piper sighed and pressed the dismiss button, there was no way she was facing her mom right now.

"I have to go. " Piper sighed seeming very down-hearted.

She turned to leave Alex's room as Alex reached out to grab her wrist but stopped, opting instead to say her name. "Piper?"

"Yeah?" Piper asked unsure of what Alex was going to say.

"You still up for those plans we made for Elizabeth's birthday?"

Piper hummed in approval. "Yeah of course."

"See you in a few days then." Alex said as Piper walked away. Alex was mistaken last night, this exact moment right here and now as she heard the apartment door shut signifying Piper's departure was the moment she felt the most empty.

The raven-haired girl let herself fall backwards onto the bed.

"Fuck." She muttered as she exhaled deeply.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please leave a review, I always love reading them, they put a smile on my face. You all deserved a fairly cute chapter I think.


	22. Chapter 20 - Part one

A/N: Thank you for all of your amazing reviews, I adore reading every single one of them. They always make my day. It's a short update but I thought you deservd one. M - No easter eggs in this one I'm afraid, sorry. I hope you enjoy it.

 **CHAPTER TWENTY Part one**

A few days passed and Alex was supposed to meet Lucy for a coffee to discuss the job opportunity but since Piper had already told he all about it she decided to stand her up. After all that this woman dragged Piper through she thought that she deserved looking sad and lonely in a local coffee bar. However, she really didn't fancy going into work, she didn't fancy running into her boss at any point, she even made the point of changing most of her shifts around to days when she knew that her boss wasn't going to be in.

Alex and Piper didn't meet again until Monday afternoon when Piper was due to babysit Elizabeth. As Alex had moved her shifts around Piper found she was needed slightly less which she wasn't too pleased about. Alex didn't have to work tonight, though it was her three year anniversary of her first date with Sylvia.

"Hey!" Piper shouted as she stepped through the front door, no one appeared to be in.

"In my bedroom Pipes!" Alex shouted as she attempted to put earrings in. She took one look in the mirror and immediately took them out again. Alex and jewelery didn't really go together, she owned one ring that her mother had passed down to her one birthday when they had no money and one necklace that Sylvia had bought her for Christmas last year, she didn't really get along with it but she put the necklace on nevertheless.

"Hey Al, just me." Piper said as she pushed the slightly ajar door open.

Piper's mouth fell agape as she saw Alex standing in front of her mirror. The blonde looked Alex up and down. She could barely believe what she was looking at. The raven-haired girl was wearing a black dress that perfectly accentuated her cleavage and her tiny waist not to mention her legs. Piper had to stop herself from biting her lip as she followed Alex's legs from her beautifully pedicured painted black toenails up to her glorious bare ankle which bore a small semi-colon tattoo that Piper had never noticed before. Her eyes lead up Alex's legs and were eventually interrupted by the black dress. The dress she wore gathered at the left hand side at just below the hip. The material hung beautifully and dropped at the right hand side revealing nothing more than bare skin. The dark color complimented Alex's porcelain skin perfectly.

"Close that mouth sunshine, you'll catch flies." Alex stated before tuning back to the mirror to apply her red lipstick.

Piper closed her mouth and shifted her eyes up to Alex's face, she wore nothing more than simple eyeliner, mascara and red lipstick.

Alex let out a throaty chuckle. "Elizabeth's in her bedroom why don't you go and say hello?"

Piper nodded dumbly, all words had apparently exited her. She didn't really want to move but she knew she had to. She wanted to stand here all evening and drink Alex in but she would have no such luck so she walked away. The blonde knew that this show of skin wasn't for her.

Alex smiled to herself, she was dressing up purely for the fact that she knew Piper would be here to see her before she left. She never made an effort any of the other years, just this one. As she fumbled in her wardrobe she pulled out a pair of red patent peep toes and her favorite leather jacket with the tartan elbow patches and put them on. She made sure to walk with purpose as she strode into Elizabeth's room.

"Come and give me a hug Liz." the youngest Vause ran up to her older sister and wrapped her arms around her. Piper tried her best not to look at Alex's perfectly formed cleavage as she leaned down. "Be good for Piper, I'll see you in the morning okay?" Elizabeth returned to the substantially large crate of Lego-like bricks which sat next to Piper on the floor and immediately began building again.

Piper waited until Alex had walked out of the room before following her.

"Alex, wait." Piper said as Alex reached for the door handle.

The raven-haired girl couldn't control her smile but Piper couldn't see it. She desperately wanted a sign that Piper felt the same way about her, she wanted her to say 'stay here with me, don't go'. Alex's smile dropped as Piper spoke again. "Don't forget our plans for Elizabeth's birthday."

Alex lifted the left corner of her mouth in a half smile. "I wouldn't forget it for the world kid." she turned to leave but Piper opened her mouth again.

"Wait." Piper desperately wanted to say exactly what she was thinking. 'Stay here with me Alex, please don't go.' But she wasn't brave enough. "Have a nice time Alex." The blonde reached up slightly to adjust Alex's jacket lapels. Alex relaxed into Piper's touch.

"I have to go now Pipes, Sylvia's waiting for me downstairs." Just as Alex finished speaking she heard a loud horn noise. "I guess that's her."

Piper dropped her hands to her sides and hung her head slightly. "Okay."

Alex lifted Piper's head with her hand and kissed her gently on the forehead. "See you in the morning."

Piper nodded as she shut the door behind her, she was too wrapped up in her own sadness to realize that it was obvious that Alex wasn't going to enjoy herself tonight.

Alex sighed as she stepped out of the apartment. She fully considered walking straight back in and sitting down, not going anywhere just refusing to move until Piper made her but she didn't, she walked straight ahead, down the stairs and out into the cold breeze. She hated the idea of leaving poor Piper behind but right now what she needed was some good old familiarity and that was what Sylvia provided her with, she wasn't prepared to throw that all away just for a gut feeling that she has about Piper because Alex was scared. She was scared of falling in love, and scared of hurting Piper. She was scared of running away and of getting it all wrong. She was terrified of losing Piper.

Piper place her forehead against the cool of the door and she sighed loudly. "Oh Alex."

"Why didn't you kiss her?" Piper nearly had a heart attack at the sound of Elizabeth's voice.

"Do all of you do that, stand in the doorway and make people jump?"

Elizabeth chuckled, "Sorry I didn't mean to make you jump." She slowly approached Piper and in an effort to comfort her, wrapped her arms around Piper's waist.

"Thanks kid." Piper spoke, mentally cursing herself at the use of Alex's nickname.

"So...?" Elizabeth questioned as she broke away from the hug and headed to the sofa.

Piper followed. "So what?"

"So, why didn't you kiss her?" Elizabeth asked as Piper slumped her already exhausted body down onto the sofa next to her.

"Because she has a girlfriend and she obviously doesn't fancy me."

"Girl please!" She began.

Piper raised an eyebrow at the sassy high pitched tone of Elizabeth's voice.

"You got it, you got the Vause look!" Elizabeth was now kneeling on the sofa throwing her hands up in delight.

"Did I?" Piper questioned, pulling some awkward faces as she did so in an attempt to recreate it.

"Yeah but you lost it." Elizabeth sighed slightly downhearted.

"Sorry kid."

"Anyway, where was I?"

"Girl please!" Piper mimicked Elizabeth's words.

"Oh yeah. Girl please! Alex likes you, she told me you were pretty. She likes you and she was jealous the other day too when you went on your date."

Piper laughed at Elizabeth trying to be some sort of tiny cupid. "Well, we'll see about that."

A silence spread between the pair for a few seconds.

"What are my birthday plans?" She asked with a shy smile on her face.

"You'll just have to see now won't you?" Piper said as she tapped her own nose.

Elizabeth let out a small laugh that sounded more like a hum.

"Well it's bedtime for you now Liz so go and brush your teeth and I'll be in to you in a minute."

Elizabeth did as she was told and skipped of into the bathroom.

Piper let out a loud sigh and slowly dragged herself to her feet, she really couldn't face this evening knowing that when Alex was out playing happy families with her fuckable girlfriend, she was just going to be sitting here on Alex's sofa, without her. As she came to stand outside of Elizabeth's door she could hear her singing as she dragged her finger across the spines of the books on her bookshelf.

"Alex loves Piper, Piper loves Alex, Alex won't say it, Piper won't believe it."

"Nice song." Piper said as she stepped into Liz's bedroom.

A genuine smile was shared between the two as they settled down to read a story together.

-0-0-0-0-0-

It was only an hour later when Diane stepped through the door.

"I'm home Piper." She said as she swung the door open, she seemed exceedingly happy about something today.

"You seem chipper today." Piper stated as sh raised herself from a lying position to a sitting position, the blue blanket that usually adorned the back of the sofa was covering her legs.

"I've managed to get the whole day off on Wednesday for Liz's birthday, but it means that I have to do a double shift tomorrow which means you and Alex have to have her for the whole day."

Piper grinned from ear to ear, Diane didn't know about their birthday plans for tomorrow. "Don't worry about that, me and Alex have the whole day planned out for her already, we are taking her swimming and then out to lunch and then to the ice cream parlor, the museum, the library and then the toy store, then eventually home!"

Diane stood, mouth agape, behind the breakfast bar. "Wow, you girls really have it planned out, why don't you sleep over tomorrow night too, that will surely make both of their days." She was referring to both Elizabeth and Alex. "Then you can be here for her actual birthday, we are taking her to the zoo and then the cinema and out for lunch. You can come too. Unless you already have plans that is."

Piper smiled. "I would love to Diane. Elizabeth is lucky to have you two."

Diane walked over to the sofa where Piper sat and she placed a hand upon the blonde's shoulder. "Us three are all lucky to have you Piper."

Piper bit back tears at Diane's words, it was unbelievable to feel wanted and needed, something she never thought she would. "I wish Alex thought the same." Piper thought to herself.

Th oldest Vause took a seat next to Piper and shuffled herself under the blanket before wrapping her arms around the young girl.

"What's up sugar." Diane questioned, her voice was thick but soft unlike Alex's gruff voice.

Piper relaxed into Diane's touch. "Girl problems I guess."

Diane sighed. "Lucy or Alex?" She already knew the answer to the question but she needed to hear it from Piper.

"Alex."

"What did she do now?"

"You know Diane, I think it's just me being stupid. I'm mad at her for going on an anniversary dinner with her girlfriend."

Diane chuckled at Piper's confession, it would have sounded stupid if Diane didn't know exactly what was going on between the pair. "Sugar, let me tell you something, trust me, you aren't stupid and let me let you in on a little secret." She leaned into Piper's ear and whispered "I'm mad at her for going too."

Piper lifted her head and looked Diane in the eyes. "You of all people should support her in her lasting relationship, you're her mom."

Diane looked slightly hurt by Piper's comment but she knew exactly what she was saying. "Honey, I'm mad her because she is in a relationship for all the wrong reasons, there isn't any love there anymore, hell, I don't even think there was any in the first place. She never dresses up for her, she never says that she loves her. She doesn't do any of the relationship stuff apart from sex. Why do you think Sylvia isn't allowed in the apartment anymore?"

Piper cringed and her cheeks blushed as Diane spoke of Alex and Sylvia, her mind flashed back to the other week when Alex dragged Sylvia into the house for very loud sex.

"It's only sex Piper, no need to be such a prude." Diane mistook Piper's cringing and blushing as a response to her speaking about sex. "She always looks as miserable as sin when she has to go out with her. Mutual hatred and knowing is what that relationship strives off of. It's toxic Piper."

Piper simply nodded as she rested her head on Diane's chest.

"She really should break up with her, it's bringing them both down. I guess Alex is worried about losing the sex and Sylvia is worried about losing the arm candy."

As the pair neared the end of their conversation and Piper intended on making tracks, Alex walked through the door.

"Nice date?" Piper asked, attempting to put some sincerity in her voice.

"Meh." Alex replied she didn't even stop to talk to her mother, she just headed straight into her room.

"Same happens every time she comes back from a date with Sylvia." Diane stated as her eyes followed Alex out of the room.

"Oh, I'm just gonna go give her this bag back, I borrowed some clothes the other day." Piper stated, she didn't even look at Diane when she spoke, her eyes were still focused on the spot where Alex disappeared from sight.

"At your own risk, kid." Diane replied gesturing her hand towards the hallway.

"Alex, it's me." Piper knocked on the door lightly.

"Unless you have drugs, alcohol or pizza then go away." Alex stated, she didn't sound angry but she sounded serious.

"There's a bottle of her favorite wine in the fridge, take that in with you. Oh, and don't forget the glasses."

Piper placed the bag down on the side and grabbed the wine and glasses, she was much too familiar with this place for even her own liking, she knew it better than home. She almost walked away when she noticed the bag on the side again, she picked it up with her teeth and walked towards Alex's room again.

"I have wine." She mumbled, barely audible as she had a carrier bag hanging from her mouth.

"Then come in." Alex pulled the door open and then slumped back onto the bed.

Piper pushed the door closed with her foot and she dropped the carrier bag next to Alex on the bed.

Alex didn't even need to look, she already knew what it was. "Mmm, thanks." she mumbled, still not moving.

"Me and you are going to sit here and have a drink and a laugh until you feel happier." Piper demanded as she pured out two glasses of Alex's favorite wine. Diane had obviously bought it in knowing full well how Alex would be after her date.

Alex didn't protest, she just sat upright and took a glass from Piper. "Thanks."

Piper watched in amazement as Alex pulled the glass delicately to her lips and took a sip. "So you can drink like a lady then." Piper smiled at the lipstick residue left on the glass and then looked at Alex's lips, still bright red.

Alex pulled the signature Vause look and Piper reciprocated it, pulling it off perfectly. She had been practicing after Elizabeth went to bed. The dark haired girl couldn't help but break out a smile. "You did it kid, good job." She raised the glass to her lips again.

Piper changed her facial expression to a more serious one. "You deserve better than her."

Alex pulled the glass away from her lips not even taking a sip. "And you deserve more than the shit life you've had up to now but what are we going to do about that."

The pair silenced, they both knew that whatever the other had said was true. Neither could deny it.

Piper downed the rest of the wine in her glass in one as she noticed th time, she really should be headed home.

"Wow, Pipes, I didn't know you could drink like a man." Alex mocked Piper's earlier comment about Alex drinking like a lady. This earned her a gentle shove.

Alex fell backwards dramatically onto the bed somehow keeping her glass upright, not spilling a drop of wine.

"I have to go now." Piper said as she stood to leave.

Alex immediately stood to follow her.

Diane sat quietly on the sofa as Alex opened the door for Piper, pulling it slowly behind her. She now stood barefoot in the corridor facing he blonde who looked lie she wanted to say something.

"You look beautiful tonight by the way." Piper said as she began to walk away.

Alex couldn't get the words she wanted to fall out of her mouth, she settled instead for "See you in the morning Piper."

Piper didn't acknowledge Alex, she just carried on walking, she strode as fast as she could, practically running down the flights of stairs. She couldn't turn around otherwise she would probably find herself in the embrace of Alex's arms, so she ran.

"There's the lady I raised." Diane said as Alex walked back into the apartment. "Piper told me all about your plans for tomorrow. Elizabeth is so lucky to have you and Piper in her life."

Alex leaned over the back of the sofa and placed a kiss on her mother's lips leaving a slight red mark. "And all three of us are incredibly lucky to have you in our lives."

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this short update. Please leave a review even if it's only two words!


	23. Chapter 20 - Part two

A/N: Thank you for all your amazing reviews, they help me so much and spur me to write more. I think this section is longer than the last one. There will be one more section to chapter twenty before the chapter ends. In my last section I wrote at the end that Alex kisses Diane on the lips when I meant cheek, I don't re-read any of my chapters before I post them so there is always a few mistakes, a big thank you to one of my reviewrs for pointing that out for me. I hope you enjoy, I felt like we needed an Elizabeth centric chapter/section so here you go. M, there is about three easter eggs in here for you so happy hunting. As always please enjoy this section and please leave a review, they mean the world to me. I'm so proud of how far this story has come, I'm amazed at how many follows and favourites it has, so thank you all.

 **CHAPTER TWENTY Part two**

Piper woke up the next morning and was unbelievably excited by the day that lay ahead. It promised to be an exciting one as she and Alex had planned a multitude of things to do for Elizabeth's pre-birthday celebrations. Her birthday was tomorrow and Diane had asked her to stay over for the night. The blonde grabbed her backpack and filled it with clean clothes for tomorrow, a towel and bikini for swimming and a purse full of money. She had saved most of the money she had been given as a babysitter and saved it for Elizabeth's birthday. The jar was beyond full and Piper was happy about that. She didn't really need the money anyway, she lived off of her parents wealth.

Alex was supposed to be meeting her in town at nine to pick up presents for Elizabeth before they took her swimming. She was already running slightly late and so she had to rush getting in and out of the shower, she barely felt clean.

As she dashed into the town center, a mere 10 minute jog away she arrived just on time. Alex was already waiting outside the mall.

The raven-haired girl let out a smile that looked as if it could rip her face in half as she took in the sight before her that was Piper, heavily panting, out of breath and flushed red.

"I'm here, that's all that matters." Piper breathed out between pants before Alex could even utter a word.

"Alive would be nice though." Alex remarked as she stood looking amazing in her black and white ensemble.

"Let's just get what we need and get back." Piper rushed, still feeling slightly exhausted. Usually she could run for hours but today was obviously not one of those days.

The pair already knew exactly what they wanted and so quickly dashed around to get it before coming out again.

"I have mom's car so we have to be quick getting back so that she can get to work." Alex said as she walked briskly back to the car park where she had left it. Piper's slightly shorter legs struggled to keep up with Alex's quick long strides.

"Race you." Alex yelled as they reached the opening to the car park. They were both laden down with carrier bags and couldn't run quickly but they attempted the race nevertheless.

"That's not fair!" Piper exclaimed as Alex reached the car first. "You knew where the car was parked and you have longer legs."

Alex simply threw Piper her signature Vause look and popped the boot. "Sure kid, whatever you say."

Piper threw the look right back. She was beyond pleased with her new found talent.

As they reached the apartment Alex decided it best to leave all of Elizabeth's presents in the car. She would obviously see them if they tried to sneak them in now.

"Home mom, car's outside usual space. Piper's here." Alex yelled as she entered the seemingly empty apartment and threw her keys into the bowl.

"See we could have sneaked them in." Piper said as she playfully tapped Alex on the arm.

"Sneak what in?" Elizabeth asked as she ran over to give Piper a hug.

"Oh, I see, I'm second best now am I? No presents for you then." Alex teased.

Elizabeth immediately released Piper and ran over to Alex. "Presents yay!" She squealed in delight.

"Tomorrow kid, only one more sleep." Alex held up one finger. "Now go and get dressed if you want to come swimming with me and Piper."

Elizabeth gasped loudly and ran straight to her room almost tripping Diane over in the hallway.

"Well, she's eager!" Diane laughed as she watched her youngest daughter zoom past her. "Thanks for this girls, I'm sure she will have a wonderful day." She kissed them both on the head ad then called for Elizabeth to come and say goodbye.

"Can I dump my spare clothes in your room so I don't have to take them swimming with me please?" Piper asked Alex.

"Spare clothes?" Came the reply with a tilted head.

"Oh, yeah, your mom said I could stay over tonight. I don't mind sleeping on the sofa I just don't want to have to take my cloths with me when we go swimming."

Alex chuckled slightly. Piper always rambled when she was nervous. "Not a problem kid. Knock yourself out." Alex held out a hand and gestured in the direction of her bedroom.

As they all wished Diane goodbye, Elizabeth disappeared off into her bedroom to finish getting dressed and Piper headed into Alex's room to empty her bag contents. Alex followed.

Piper tipped all of her stuff onto Alex's bed and started to put what she needed for swimming back into her backpack. The raven-haired girl perched on the edge of the bed and watched as the contents of the bag dispersed onto the bed.

"Nice panties." Alex laughed as she swung a pair of red lace briefs around her finger.

"Put those down!" Piper demanded, trying to sound angry but instead sounded somewhere between intrigued and excited.

"Make me." Alex said as Piper leaped towards her in an attempt to grab the underwear.

The pair paused for a while, sexual tension was rife throughout the room, they were quickly interrupted by an excitable six year old.

"Tickle her armpits!" Elizabeth yelled and Piper did as was instructed.

Alex attempted to tense all of her muscles but to no avail. he was reduced to a giggling mass on the floor as she slid off of the bed.

Elizabeth joined the pair in their tickling and she soon found herself sat on Alex's stomach tickling Alex's armpits whilst Piper sat on Alex's hip pinning her legs down with her own legs and pinning her hands up above her head.

The raven-haired girl was wriggling underneath Piper and she loved it.

"Submit!" Piper yelled.

"Never!" Was the reply, she knew Alex wouldn't give in that easy.

"Step it up a notch Liz" Piper said as she smiled watching the laughter roll down Alex's face in the form of tears.

Elizabeth complied and Alex was soon surrendering.

"I give up!" She squealed and immediately the tickling stopped. Alex took a while to regain her composure.

"Go and get your swimming costume and a towel Liz." Alex managed to breath out between pants.

"We won right?" She asked before moving under Piper's arms to escape.

"Yeah kid. You and Piper won." She panted again. Elizabeth skipped down the hallway and left Alex and Piper on the bedroom floor.

"Give me my pants now!" Piper sat up onto her heels so as not to put too much pressure on Alex and released her hands.

"Nope!" Alex shouted as soon as she was free.

Piper pinned Alex's arms back down with one hand. She was particularly strong despite not looking it. She pulled the pants out of Alex's hand with the other.

The blonde pulled back but held onto Alex's wrists. She placed a small kiss upon Alex's forehead and then moved to whisper in her ear.

"I win." Two words Alex would never forget for the rest of the time she lived. They were laced with sexual tension for one and secondly Alex would definitely get her back for that, someday, somehow.

Piper moved and stood before tucking her newly rescued knickers into another piece of her clothing.

Alex leaned up on her elbows for a moment and enjoyed the view that was Piper, in tight skinny jeans and a plain white v cut t-shirt.

"I might sleep down here tonight." Alex said as she looked around herself.

Piper hummed as she folded her towel neatly to put inside her back.

"Lots of space and an amazing view."

Piper gently kicked Alex's feet and Alex laughed as she then decided to arise and exit the room.

The three met again in the living room when they were all ready to go, Alex appeared to already have her bag ready despite Piper's distraction earlier on.

"Let's go then!" Alex announced, excitement laced in her voice. Piper fist pumped the air and Elizabeth was the first one out of the door, excitedly hurrying down the stairs as if they didn't have all the time in the world.

The raven-haired girl and the blonde followed on behind, only slightly less excited about the day's planned ventures.

"Slow down Liz!" Alex shouted down the echoey metal and concrete flights of stairs. She could tell by the noise that Elizabeth was jumping down more than one at a time.

"Oww!" She shouted as Alex began to speed up to run down the stairs "I'm okay!" Elizabeth yelled again and Alex slowed down, her poor heart was running at ninety to the dozen.

"Don't do that to me Liz!" Alex shouted playfully down the stairs.

"Sorry Al." She replied back up the stairs as she carried on skipping down, taking the stairs one at a time this time.

Alex couldn't help but smile. As much as she got on her nerves, Alex adored the young girl.

"She is going to love build-a-bear." Piper whispered to Alex, knowing first hand how good Elizabeth's hearing can be sometimes, as well as her being prone to being nosy.

"I think you are more excited than she is!" Alex retorted earning a playful smack from Piper.

"That's because she doesn't know we are going!"

Alex nodded her in agreement as she scanned the buildings foyer for any sign of Elizabeth.

"Boo!" Elizabeth yelled as she jumped out from underneath the stairwell. Alex jumped a mile and nearly fell down the last two steps.

Piper laughed hysterically and Alex placed one hand clutching her heart and she used the other to playfully hit Piper in an attempt to silence her laughter.

"Oww!" Piper mocked as she acted hurt and rubbed her arm.

"Christ kid, my heart!" Alex finally said as she regained her composure. It was Alex's one weakness and Elizabeth knew it. She was terrible with surprises, there was a reason for that, one that only her mom knew.

The three caught the bus from the end of the street and headed into town to spend the day. They sat at the back and Elizabeth was mesmerized by the view out of the back window.

"The traffic is moving funny Al!" She commented as she pointed at the traffic behind them.

"No, you're just looking at it funny kid." Alex retorted as she watched the wonderment spread across Elizabeth's face in the form of a huge smile and wide eyes.

Piper and Alex rarely spoke other than to tell Liz to be careful or to tell her that it was a surprise after she asked "Where are we going after swimming?"

At the swimming pool the three went separate ways, they all went into separate changing rooms.

Elizabeth was the first out of her changing room and she waited patiently for Alex and Piper to finish.

"Looking good kid!" Alex announced as she stepped outside of her changing room and saw Elizabeth leaned against the lockers wearing her Ariel swimming costume with the attached frilly tutu.

"You too Al. Black is your favorite color isn't it?"

"That it is kid, that it is." Alex commented as she attempted to forcefully shove the bags into the locker. She hadn't noticed Piper exit her changing room.

"Need a little help there?" She questioned as she stood behind Alex.

"For God sake will you two stop doing that please!" Alex seemed out of breath.

"Sorry, here, let me help."

It was when Alex stood back to let Piper put the bags in the locker that she saw what Piper was wearing. The raven-haired woman had to bite her lip in order to stop her jaw dropping. The blonde looked flawless in her nude color two piece bikini. The bottoms tied at each side with bows and two brown beads hanging off of each string, the top was much the same but it tied behind the neck and behind the back and Alex couldn't help but let her mind wander to the idea of undoing each and every bow. Her blonde hair was just about tamed into a messy bun atop her head. Alex could see every inch of Piper's neck and she fought herself not to take a step forward and press her lips against the soft skin. The blonde's toned arms and stomach and runners legs fueled Alex further.

"So that's how you do it next time yeah? It's just like jenga I guess. Alex, are you even listening?"

"Hmm?" Alex questioned as she lifted her gaze from the blonde's perfectly toned thighs.

"Seriously Alex, you weren't even listening?" She crossed her arms and tried to appear mad but she knew that it wouldn't last. She had just caught Alex Vause checking her out and she couldn't be more pleased with that. Her choice of a bikini instead of a one piece was definitely worth it. Piper's furrowed brow and frown quickly melted into a smile.

Elizabeth tutted playfully at Alex and then ran through the changing rooms in an attempt to escape Alex's current playful expression, she knew what was coming next.

The raven-haired girl quickly caught up with the young Vause, they both left Piper in the dust back at the locker. Alex scooped Liz up into her arms and then jumped straight into the water. She couldn't care less what anyone thought about her, she wanted Liz to have the best damn day of her life, she wanted her to have the life she never had.

Piper soon joined them at the water's edge.

"How's the water?" Piper asked as she sat down on the tiles.

"Wet!" Alex joked.

Piper threw Alex the signature Vause look, which she had perfected, and dipped her feet in. She spread her legs slightly and placed her hands on the tiled pool edge, she swung her feet in the water. Alex stood directly in front of her. Elizabeth had swam off Alex wasn't too worried, it was early in the morning, not many people were in the pool, she was a strong swimmer and there was almost one lifeguard to every person.

"Haa haa." Piper sarcastically commented as she brought a foot out of the water to splash Alex.

"Right that's it." Alex laughed as she pulled Piper by the ankles straight into the water.

When the blonde finally regained her breath she splashed Alex again.

"You really do like getting people wet don't you?" Piper asked not realizing the obvious euphemism lace within it.

"You have no idea Pipes." Alex winked and swam away leaving Piper flustered and blushing.

Nearly two hours later the trio were finally out of the pool and dressed headed to their next location.

"MacDonald's?" Alex questioned to Elizabeth.

Her face lit up like Christmas as she feverously nodded her head. Piper was sure it would fall off if she nodded any faster.

"MacDonald's it is I think!" Piper said as she pointed to the golden arches sign in the distance.

She was so happy to see Elizabeth happy, and more importantly, Alex was happy too.

The three all sat around a table eating happy meals and playing with their newly received toys. Piper was confused by how normal the entire situation felt for her. She wasn't used to feeling so comfortable and happy and it was strange for the young girl.

After MacDonald's the three headed to the nearest Ice cream parlor, it was the same franchise as the one no far from Elizabeth's school and Alex knew it sold her favorite ice cream. It was the first time Piper had ever been and judging by Piper's figure, Alex was not surprised. The two Vause's were more than happy to provide her with some flavor choices. In the end she let them choose for her and she ended up with a tub containing one scoop of bubblegum ice cream and one scoop of salted caramel ice cream with raspberry sauce, a mint stick and rainbow sprinkles. It was a strange flavor combination and Piper pulled some strange faces whilst eating it.

Alex and Elizabeth were laughing animatedly and Piper loved the sound so she carried on making the faces.

Next stop was the museum to see the shark exhibition they had recently put on. It featured a real shark submerged in a tank full of see through liquid that Piper assumed must have been PVA or something of the sort. Elizabeth ran around in awe looking at all the museum had to offer and asking hundreds of questions, all of which Alex and Piper were more than happy to answer. It fed her thirst for knowledge and knowing that it was something that the three of them all shared made Alex beam.

The blonde and the raven-haired girl watched the young adventurous girl like a hawk as she admired different pieces of art and photography and ceramics. They looked like prideful parents as she spoke to Piper about the sharks and other people stopped to listen in awe of her incredible shark knowledge. She soon had an audience and the curator approached her and asked her to be a tour guide for the shark exhibit for the group she had formed, she was even given her own name badge to keep. Elizabeth was beaming, she was in her element. Piper soon fell to the back of the crowd where Alex stood and the pair couldn't contain their smiles.

"She's gonna go so far you know." Piper commented as she folded her arms.

"She sure is." Alex replied.

When she had finished the guided tour of the shark exhibition, Elizabeth ran to Alex and Piper, arms open wide. Alex picked her up and lifted her high into the air.

"How did I do?" She questioned as she looked into Alex's green eyes. Elizabeth's eyes were hazel and at that exact moment, simply made Alex melt.

"You did amazing kid." Elizabeth grinned and her smile touched her eyes.

Piper quickly snapped a picture of the pair in the moment for Diane. She really was missing out on a fantastic family life. She could tell that the love shared between them was all they really needed and Piper thought that her heart was about to burst.

"Where now?" Elizabeth asked as she was lowered gently to a standing position again.

"The library!" Piper yelled as she lifted an arm to point and began marching forward. Elizabeth giggled and followed Piper's actions. Alex couldn't help but smile at how much Elizabeth was loving today. She really wished that her mom could be here to see it and so she snapped a quick picture and then jogged to catch up with the pair.

At the library Alex was dragging her fingers along the spines of real life crime books presumably to find one which she hadn't already read. Piper watched as Alex furrowed her brown and dropped down to the next shelf and repeated the process. Piper snapped a photo more for herself than anything else, she adored the expression that Alex was sporting right now.

The blonde walked over to where Elizabeth was standing and saw her doing the exact same thing with the exact same expression spread across her face. Piper snapped a photo, she couldn't believe the resemblance between the pair. Every time she looked at Liz it was like looking at a miniature version of Alex.

Elizabeth eventually decided upon taking out the book that she had taken out almost a hundred times before 'All about sharks'. Alex however, came away empty handed.

"Nothing new." She simply said as Alex handed Elizabeth's library card to her.

Elizabeth just nodded. It was obvious that this was an activity that the pair usually did together, Piper felt blessed just to be a part of that.

The three entered the mall and headed straight for the escalators. Alex and Piper knew exactly where they were going as they had discussed bringing Elizabeth this morning instead of taking her to the toy store. They had even recorded a little voice box to put inside whatever stuffed animal Liz decided to choose.

"Here we are." Alex announced as the three stood outside the entrance to the build-a-bear workshop in the mall.

"Do i get to build a bear?" Elizabeth was almost squealing with excitement.

"Of course you do kid. Go ahead, go have a look." Alex said as she gently pushed Elizabeth forward. Elizabeth ran straight in to have a look at the selection of bears.

Piper and Alex walked side by side as the entered the brightly colored shop. They took a seat on a stool near the middle of the shop where they knew Elizabeth would be able to find them.

"I think today has been a roaring success." Piper said as she slapped her hands down onto her thighs and then rubbed them slightly.

"Thank you for being part of it." Alex replied as she gently rested her hand upon Piper's left which sat atop her thigh.

Piper panicked, pulled her hand away and stood up, Alex had a girlfriend "It can't happen like this can it? Was she just being friendly? Am I over thinking things?"

As if Alex knew what she had done wrong and is if she could read the thoughts running through the blonde's head, she stood up too.

"I'm sorry Pipes, let's just forget about that."

Piper simply nodded and then the pair were interrupted by the musings of a familiar voice.

"I found one guys, I want this one!" Elizabeth shouted as she excitedly waved a limp grey and white creature in front of the pair.

"Okay then kid, let's get that one." Alex had no clue what it was but as long as Elizabeth was happy she was happy too.

It was obvious that the raven-haired girl had a puzzled look on her face because Piper was quickly able to read her.

"It's a shark."

"Oh, is that what that is." Alex sounded genuinely amazed. "I thought it was a squirrel."

Piper just laughed and walked over to the machine where a woman was helping Liz stuff the shark.

"I see it now." Alex commented as the last of the stuffing was put into it.

The woman instructed Elizabeth to make a wish and to kiss the heart and put it inside the shark. At this point Alex dashed over to the counter to retrieve the pre-recorded voice box.

Alex dashed back just in time. Elizabeth kissed the heart and pushed it into the bear and Alex passed the woman the voice box to put inside before she sealed the bear up.

Elizabeth took the shark from the woman who was beaming ear to ear.

"She's a very clever girl." The woman commented to Alex as she Elizabeth admired the newly filled shark that now looked to sport a smile and large blue eyes that reminded Alex of Piper's.

"Yeah she is." Alex replied as she ruffled Liz's hair. "Go find him some clothes then." Alex gestured over to the wall which sported a plethora of assorted outfits.

"What was that all about?" Alex asked Piper, inquiring about the woman's comment.

"Shark facts." Was all Piper had to say and Alex immediately understood.

Elizabeth came running over with two outfits. One was a mermaid costume and one was just a t-shirt that said 'Boyz Rule' on it.

"Well he's got a day outfit and a swimming outfit, what about an outfit for bed?" Piper questioned as she looked over at the wall behind the young girl. "What about a dressing gown?"

Elizabeth widened her eyes and dashed away returning mere seconds later with a camouflage dressing gown complete with hood in her hand.

Piper nodded. "Now we are all set, let's go pay."

Alex was just about to pull her wallet out of her pocket when Piper placed a lot of notes on the counter, it was probably way more than needed but she wanted to make a point, she was paying and not Alex. The raven-haired girl had won the argument over the fact that she wanted to pay th entrance fee to swimming and to the museum and for dinner. Piper would be damned if she was going to let her win this time.

"I got this." Piper said as she saw Alex pull her wallet out. Alex didn't argue, she simply returned the wallet back to it's pocket.

"And what's your shark going to be called?" The woman at the till asked as she wrote out an adoption certificate.

"Sam." Elizabeth replied.

"And is Sam a girl or a boy?" The woman at the till asked another question, there was no gender box on the certificate and so Alex didn't really think it was necessary to ask.

"It's a shark. Sam will wear boy and girl clothes." Elizabeth simply stated.

Alex couldn't have been prouder at that exact moment in time. Piper was beaming too, the young girl's understanding of the world was beautiful and it often brought Piper hope in times of frequent sadness.

The woman at the desk was clearly taken aback by Liz's attitude to life. "Okay then."

Piper slid over the money before the woman whose name tag read "Iris" could even voice the price.

She mumbled as she tapped something into her till and then took only half of the notes Piper had placed down. The woman place a handful of one dollar bills and a few coins onto the counter and pushed them back to Piper who simply nodded and messily pushed them all back into her purse.

Elizabeth received the adoption certificate from the woman at the desk and thanked her profusely. Iris was still slightly taken aback by Liz's comment but she seemed pleasantly surprised by her manners.

As the four of them, as it now were with Sam in tow, exited the shop Alex paused.

"Squeeze him." She simply said.

Elizabeth looked confused by Alex's comment and she looked up to Piper for reassurance.

"Squeeze his belly, he has a voice box." Piper said.

As the youngest Vause squeezed the belly of her shark it spoke to her.

At first it was the both of them speaking - _Happy birthday Elizabeth lots of love from_

Then just Alex - _Alex_

Then the pair of them again - _and_

Then just Piper - _Piper_

And then finally the both of them together again - _We love you._

Elizabeth squealed in delight as the voices came to an end. She squeezed it again.

"Yay, now I just need my wish to come true." Elizabeth spoke, referring to the wish placed upon Sam's heart as she placed it inside.

"I'm sure it will kid." Alex replied as she once again ruffled Elizabeth's hair.

"I hope so." Elizabeth held Sam tight, she was the only one that knew what the wish was.

A/N: As always, please leave a review even if it's only a couple of words long, I love reading them :)


	24. Chapter 20 - Part three

A/N: Thank you again, as always, to all of my wonderful reviewers. I recently hit 400 reviews which is amazing guys, thank you so much. I have decided that this chapter will have four parts instead of three because of length and timing of updates and stuff so enjoy this chapter. I'm not super happy with it but see what you guys think. It's drama free but the next section won't be so enjoy it whilst it lasts. (I'm sorry M, I don't think there are any easter eggs in here for you but if you find any then let me know.) Happy reading.

 **CHAPTER TWENTY Part three**

The three girls and Sam took the bus back from town and Elizabeth was fighting to keep herself awake, it was barely past 6 but she had had a huge day. They sat at the back and Liz rested her head on Alex's lap as she played with her brunette locks. Piper stole glances at the pair when she wasn't looking through the window. They looked adorable. The blonde allowed a warmth to spread through her heart and onto her face.

Alex had noticed Piper smiling at them but she kept her focus on her younger sister. She knew damn well that if she looked up at Piper that she would have to fight herself not to just pull Piper in and kiss her like she so desperately wanted to.

As the trio pulled up at their bus stop Alex had to carry Elizabeth off of the bus, she wasn't quite asleep but she was almost there. Piper grabbed Liz's bags and followed obediently behind Alex. The blonde adored everything about the current situation.

They entered the apartment after the stair climb which, understandably, took a considerable amount longer than usual considering Alex was carrying a now sleeping child. The raven-haired girl placed the young girl down on the sofa and walked to the kitchen area.

"I'll put her some tea in to cook and then I'll wake her up in about ten minutes." Alex placed some frozen pasties in the oven and then turned her attention to Piper who was grinning wildly as she sat at the breakfast bar.

"What are you grinning at?" She asked the blonde.

"You. You are going to make an amazing mother some day."

Alex made a snort of derision before speaking. "Please, no child is coming out of me."

"There's other options."

"We are eighteen Piper, there's plenty of time for us yet."

The use of we and us in Alex's sentence threw Piper a little. She wasn't sure how to take it, did she mean the pair of them together or was she just generalizing? Piper settled upon the fact that she was just over thinking things.

Piper didn't reply and Alex walked over to where Elizabeth was asleep and gently squeezed Sam who she was firmly gripping in her arms. The shark spoke awakening the young girl.

"Is it my birthday?" She asked as she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"Not yet kid, food and then bed then birthday in the morning." Alex said as she sauntered back into the kitchen to check on the pasties.

Elizabeth rubbed her eyes as she walked over and took the seat next to Piper.

"Why don't you put Sam's pajamas on ready for bed?" The blonde asked as she gestured to the bag that sat on the end of the breakfast bar.

Just as Elizabeth reached for the bag, the front door was swung open, Diane was home early.

The youngest Vause dashed over to greet her mother, Sam in hand.

"You're home early." Alex stated very matter of factly. The raven-haired girl was used to this happening when she got fired but Diane seemed too chipper for that to be the case.

"Yeah, I thought you were doing a double shift." Piper said as she span her stool around.

"Well one out of three pleased to see me isn't too bad I suppose. Better than none." She snarked sarcastically. Piper finally understood where Alex got it from.

Piper got up off of the tool and walked over to give Diane a hug. Alex followed.

"Seriously though mom, why are you home so early?" The raven-haired girl asked as she threw her arms around the older girl's neck.

"I have an hour break between shifts so I thought I'd nip home to see my three precious girls."

Piper beamed from ear to ear. She adored being part of the Vause family. It almost made her forget the shit that was going on at home.

Elizabeth had pulled her mom to come and sit on the sofa whilst she told her all about her day. Piper came and sat the other side of Diane, showing her photos of the day.

This time it was Alex's time to smile. She adored this idea of a cute snug little family unit. It was refreshing to see her mother accepting a female into the family. All of the ones that Alex presented just weren't good enough. But Piper was, and Piper deserved that. The raven-haired girl let out a deep sigh as she looked over at three. What she saw before her was perfection. Everything that Diane ever wanted and more was right in that room before her. Alex was quickly becoming aware that Sylvie wasn't part of that perfection and as she thought about it herself, this was perfection to Alex too. As she looked at the three again she couldn't distinguish between the three of them which she loved the most.

She paused at her own thoughts. "Love? When did I fall in love with Piper?" She thought to herself. Then she realized, it had slowly been happening since the first party they attended together. That was why she cared so much when she and Piper fell out. It was why she cared so much when Piper got hurt, well there was another reason for that but that was an entirely different story. It was why she spent the entire day in her presence today and didn't once get annoyed or even stop to think about her girlfriend.

Alex wasn't sure how long she had been deep in her thoughts but before she knew it the oven timer was beeping.

"Dinner Liz." Alex called as she pulled the tray out of the oven.

"Smells good Al." Diane commented as she followed Liz over. "Right I've got to get back to work now. I'll see you later girls, I'll see you in the morning Liz." She gave each of the girls a kiss on the forehead and then left just as quickly as she had come.

"It's my birthday tomorrow." Liz chanted as she tapped her knife and fork on the plate in front of her.

"Eat up kid, then you'll be big and strong like me." Alex flexed her muscles in an attempt to look strong.

Elizabeth giggled at Alex. "And pretty like Piper."

Piper was stood at at the opening of the kitchen now awaiting Alex's response.

"Yeah kid, and pretty like Piper." Alex looked at Piper and smiled. Piper simply blushed and smiled back.

When Elizabeth had finished her tea, Alex instructed her to go to bed.

"What do you want for tea?" Alex asked Piper as the raven-haired girl finished washing the dishes.

Piper was drying them. "I don't know, surprise me." Piper knew that they didn't have much in.

"Take-out it is then." Alex laughed.

"Alright then. Pizza please."

"I thought you wanted it to be a surprise Pipes."

Piper felt her already flushed cheeks darken to a deeper shade of pink at the sound of her nickname. "It still can be, you decide what goes on it. But not pineapple, mushrooms or anything spicy."

"Kinda killing the mood Pipes." Alex playfully whipped Piper with the towel that she had just dried her hands on. "Go read Liz a story and I'll order us something."

Piper complied and she sauntered off to Liz's room. To her surprise when she entered the room Liz was already fast asleep. The blonde didn't want to spoil Alex's surprise pizza though and so she remained in Liz's room for about fifteen minutes whilst she sat and read a book aloud to the sleeping girl. Little did Piper know that Alex had been watching from the doorway for the past few minutes.

"I think she's asleep Pipes." Alex made Piper jump as she spoke, interrupting her reading.

"Jesus Alex, why?" Piper was gripping her chest and almost gasping for breath.

The raven-haired girl laughed as she pushed herself off from the door frame and uncrossed her arms. "You're cute when you are flustered." She commented as she walked away .

The blonde fully considered throwing the book that she was holding at Alex but then she realized it wasn't hers to throw and instead returned it to the book shelf, turning off the light as she left the room.

"Food will be here soon." Alex commented from her place on the sofa. "Shall I pick a movie to watch whilst we eat?"

"Sure." Was Piper's reply. "Just going to put my pajamas on. These trousers are killing my legs."

Alex nodded, she hadn't really listened to what Piper had said. She was too busy hunting the cabinet for the scariest film she could find. In the end she settled upon letting Piper choose from a selection. As she heard gentle footsteps back into the living room Alex began to speak.

"Okay Pipes, based solely upon the title pick a film. The Conjuring, The Shining, Insidious, Mama, The Woman In Black, Dead Silence, or Sinister."

Piper was only half listening as she grabbed two cans of Pepsi out of the fridge for the pair.

"Erm..." She quickly thought about her options, she realized that she had only really heard one. "The Mama one."

Piper walked over and sat herself on the sofa as she watched Alex put all of the DVD's back into the cabinet, other than the one Piper had chosen to watch. Alex quickly thrust the movie into the DVD player so that she too would have time to get changed but she was stopped in her tracks as she looked over at Piper who was now wearing a grey vest top with no bra underneath and lighter grey gym shorts that left very little to the imagination.

"Nice pajamas." Alex commented as she walked briskly out of the room biting her lip as she did so.

Piper smiled to herself, she had successfully managed to fluster Alex Vause. She couldn't help but laugh to herself.

Alex shut her bedroom door behind her and she heard Piper laugh. "Two can play at that game." She mumbled to herself.

The raven-haired girl dipped into her pajama draw and went straight for the only negligee that she had ever owned. It was black and cinched in just above the waist and flowed downwards from there. It stopped just below Alex's buttocks and she paired it with a pair of ass-hugging black panties.

Piper watched in anticipation as Alex exited her room, she knew damn well that Alex Vause could not turn down a challenge and that was what Piper was hoping for. Plus piper had a trick up her sleeve. She threw Alex the signature Vause look and then smiled.

"You look nice Al, is this what you usually wear to watch movies with a friend?"

Alex let a sly smirk spread across her face. She did a little twirl causing the tiny black negligee to lift slightly and show off her black panties.

"Only if they are beautiful and blonde and also wearing barely any clothes."

Piper shook her head and tutted lightly. If she had any doubts before there were absolutely no doubts now that Alex felt the same way.

Half way into Alex's second show off twirl, Piper noticed a hip tattoo that she hadn't seen before but couldn't quite make out what it was, or what it said. Before she could even ask there was a knock at the door. Piper knew damn well that because of the fact that Piper had paid for build a bear that Alex wouldn't let her pay for tea. This played out perfectly for Piper when Alex grabbed her money from the counter where she had placed it earlier and rushed to the door to answer it.

A delivery boy that looked to be no older than Alex and Piper was standing at the door holding their pizza boxes. His eyes widened at the fact that Alex was a beautiful tall woman with an amazing figure and legs that went on for miles. He quickly abandoned his usual speech and simply stood in awe, mouth agape. Piper knew exactly how much Alex hated lecherous males and this played perfectly into the blonde's hands.

"This is not for you kid." She gestured to herself but the guy at the door didn't seem convinced. Piper stayed immensely quiet, she bit her lip tightly, almost piercing the skin as she held back a laugh.

"Who is it for then?" The delivery guy asked not fully believing her as there was no other sounds coming from the apartment indicating other residents.

"None of your business." The raven-haired girl quipped as she folded her arms. This had become less of a delivery and more of a Mexican stand off. Alex rolled her eyes and pushed the door open fully. "Her." He pointed to Piper who was sat on the sofa and the blonde finally released her lip and laughed loudly.

Alex was suddenly aware that she had played directly into Piper's hands.

"I'll get you back Pipes." Alex said with sincere determination in her voice.

As she looked back at the delivery boy he had the biggest smile spread across his face.

"Here's the money, keep the change, just give me the pizza." Alex thrust the money at him and took the boxes from his arms and shut the door in his face. He didn't even have time to thank the pair, Alex had left a considerable tip after all.

"Ugh! Men!" Alex sighed as she walked over to the sofa and sat down.

"Do you dress like this for all your horny teenage delivery boys or just that one?" Piper couldn't help it as the sarcasm fell out of her mouth.

"I'll get you back for this Pipes." Alex warned as she opened the first pizza box. It was ham and pineapple which was hers. She passed the other box to Piper and then pressed play on the DVD.

"Ooh, great revenge Al." Piper snarked as she opened her pizza box.

"You chose the DVD Pipes."

"No Al, the pizza, if I didn't know better I'd think you have a crush on me." Where Piper pulled this new found bravery from was beyond her, she slightly regretted the words as the rolled out but she couldn't go back on them now.

"What about the pizza?" Alex genuinely had no clue what the blonde was on about but when Piper turned the box around it all became clear.

"Oh yeah, that, it isn't really for you kid sorry."

Piper was beyond confused now so she threw a look at Alex and she elaborated.

"Yeah, one of the guys at the pizza place has a crush on my mom and he obviously recognizes the address, she always has a pepperoni pizza when she orders and I guess I just ordered you mom's usual so therefore you have that."

Piper laughed whole heartedly now as she admired the heart made out of pepperoni slices that decorated her pizza.

"I'd better not tell her she might get jealous." Piper joked as she stuffed the first piece of pizza into her mouth in a very unladylike manner.

"Don't worry mom doesn't do men, or relationships so I don't think she'll be too bothered."

Piper wasn't sure whether it was just the way that Alex said it that made it sound as if Diane preferred women too or whether she was purposefully trying to insinuate it. Either way she didn't ask.

Piper quickly abandoned the pizza in preference to hiding under the blanket that the pair had found their way under. Alex laughed as Piper tried desperately to fight off the fear that was obviously spread across her face. The blonde didn't want to turn to Alex for comfort for two reasons. The first being that Piper didn't want to appear weak and the second was that Alex already had a girlfriend.

As the woman on the telly jumped forward, Piper audibly whimpered. Alex tensed upon hearing the noise. It wasn't the good kind of whimper that she was used to hearing from girls. It was a pained whimper and for a moment Alex's mind darted back to the night that she heard Piper's head hit the counter from outside the house. She imagined her making the same whimper then, and any other time her mother hit her. Alex couldn't stand it, she fought back the burn in her eyes, both anger and sadness threatening to spill.

The raven-haired girl shuffled over to Piper, if Piper wasn't going to come to her then Alex would go to her instead. Alex wrapped a secure and comforting arm around Piper's waist and pulled her in holding her protectively. Piper didn't pull away, she was too scared right now to object.

The blonde spent more and more time hiding behind the blanket and eventually she laid her head down in Alex's lap like she had done last week when her date went terribly wrong. Alex subconsciously ran her fingers through the blonde hair sprawled over Piper's shoulders. Before she knew it Piper was fast asleep. Alex would have carried her to the bedroom like she had done last week if she wasn't feeling so tired herself. Instead she fell asleep where she sat, her hand still tangled in Piper's blonde hair and the other rested on the back of the sofa.

Alex had no clue how long they had been asleep when Diane came in from work. It must have been over two hours as the TV and DVD player had turned themselves off.

"Honey, it's me, wake up." Diane whispered into Alex's ear, not before snapping an adorable picture of the pair on her phone.

"Ow." Was the first word out of Alex's mouth as she lifted her head back upright. She quickly whipped her hand from Piper's hair and pressed it against her aching neck. This woke Piper.

"Come on girls get to bed, busy day tomorrow." Diane spoke quietly. She was treading carefully as she knew first hand how grumpy Alex can be when awoken at an ungodly hour.

Piper lifted her head slowly, yawned and stretched before standing.

"Come on Al, bed." Piper mumbled as she grabbed hold of Alex's free hand.

The raven-haired girl was happy to comply as she stood and allowed herself to be led to her bedroom.

"Whipped." Diane muttered to herself as she placed the bags containing all of Elizabeth's presents for the following day onto the breakfast bar. She widened her eyes when she spotted the fact that Alex was wearing the black negligee that Piper had bought her the first Christmas that they were together.

Piper tucked Alex into bed, grabbed one of Alex's over sized hoodies and threw it on before walking back out to where Diane was unpacking the shopping. Alex mumbled as the door creaked close but it wasn't distinguishable as a word.

"Someone's got to wrap these I guess." Piper yawned as she picked the bag up and walked to the sofa.

"Tea?" Diane offered as she screwed the brown paper bags up and threw them into the bin.

"Please."

When the tea was made Diane came and sat on the sofa next to Piper whilst she wrapped the presents that Piper and Alex had bought earlier that day. They made small talk for a while and then they eventually approached the subject that led to Alex wearing a negligee. Piper was more than happy to tell Diane every single little detail.

Diane waited until all the presents were wrapped and then she began to wrap the presents she had got for Liz.

"She's been spoiled this year." Diane stated simply.

Piper thought so too but not in the way you would imagine. There was only a few presents sat on the coffee table from each of them but the quantity didn't really matter. The things that Elizabeth was going to receive were all of a personal nature or something that she really needed rather than wanted. The family was rich in love and happiness and that was quite clearly all they needed.

"She sure has." Piper stated as she stood up and placed her mug in the kitchen. She paused before walking back to Diane.

"Thank you for everything Diane." Piper whispered as she placed a kiss on Diane's cheek. Before Diane could even reply Piper was shutting Alex's bedroom door behind her.

As she threw the hoodie off and crawled into bed next to sleeping beauty, she couldn't help but reciprocate the motion with Alex. She leaned over and kissed her gently on the cheek so as not to wake her.

"Thank you for everything Al." Piper said as she snuggled down the bed.

"You're welcome." Came the reply.

The pair were lying face to face and Piper opened her eyes to see whether she was sleep-answering or whether she was genuinely awake.

Alex had one eye open as she looked into Piper's blue eyes.

Piper simply blushed, she had been awake when she had kissed her on the cheek. She averted her gaze and looked down at her fidgeting hands, just then she felt a warm arm reach around and pull her closer. It was comforting just like earlier.

"Al?" Piper queried unsure of what else to say. She was met with nothing but a loud snore.

The blonde rolled over gently so as not to disrupt the arm from it's current position and shuffled backwards meeting and matching the curves of Alex's body perfectly and that was how she fell asleep.

A/N: Hope you liked this chapter. As always, please leave a review, they really make my day :) Thanks for reading.


	25. Chapter 20 - Part four

A/N: In the last section of the chapter I mentioned the negligee was given to Alex by Piper, as some of you pointed out, I did mean Sylvie instead. Sorry about that! This isn't the last section of chapter twenty, there will be one more. I thought you guys deserved a purely fluffy chapter after this one so look forward to that. This section is fairly short I think? I don't have a word count thing on my laptop. But enjoy nevertheless. No easter eggs I'm afraid M, I really am slacking with those. Sorry the update took so long, i've been pretty demotivated this week and had to push to get this done so I apologise if it's of a crappy quality. Happy reading and as always, please review!

 **CHAPTER TWENTY Part four**

Diane checked on the girls before she went to her bedroom. She always checked on Alex, no matter how old she got.

A huge smile spread across Diane's face when she nudged open the door to see Piper and Alex curled up in bed together. She pulled the door closed again and checked on her youngest daughter before retiring to bed with a smile on her face.

The next morning Diane was awoken to banging in the kitchen. It was just past 9 in the morning and she didn't assume that any of the girls would already be awake. She crept carefully through the hallway and into the kitchen area only to find Elizabeth pulling bowls out of the cupboard.

"Liz, what are you doing?" Diane queried as she quickly stole a glance over at the table where the presents lay unopened.

"I'm making strawberry oatmeal for everyone. It's a birthday surprise as a thank you for all my presents." Elizabeth pointed over to the table and spoke as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Okay kid, let me help you, we can do it together." Diane always remembered how highly Alex thought about that one Christmas when it was just the two of them together making Christmas dinner in the kitchen.

Elizabeth's face lit up as Diane reeled off a list of things that they would need.

The pair set to making the oatmeal and planned on joining Alex and Piper on Alex's bed for breakfast in bed. Alex had changed so much since befriending Piper, she no longer shouted at Liz for being in her room and was a much calmer person in general.

That plan quickly went to pot as an unexpected visitor turned up at the door.

"I'll get it." Elizabeth yelled as she ran excitedly to the door.

"Hi Liz, got you a present." The brunette at the door spoke as she let herself in.

"Sylvie, you know you aren't supposed to be here." Diane expressed arms crossed.

"It's okay, I'll be gone soon, I just wanted to give this to Liz." Sylvie handed Elizabeth a shoddily wrapped present that seemed to have no thought put into it whatsoever. She had never bothered in all the years that Alex and Sylvia had been together to buy Elizabeth a present so why start now?

Diane was not going to ruin Elizabeth's birthday and so she let her accept and open the present. She was only seven after all, her understanding only went so far.

"Thanks Sylvie." Elizabeth said as she showed her mom the doll that Alex's girlfriend had presented her with. She then placed it down on the side and skipped over to her mom. "Me and mom are just making strawberry oatmeal, do you want to stay for some?" Elizabeth knew that Sylvia was banned but considering her mom seemed to be tolerating her presence then she decided to be courteous.

"Oh honey, I think Sylvia has somewhere to be." Diane said as she placed her hand on Elizabeth's shoulder protectively. The oldest Vause shot the brown haired intruder a dirty glare.

"Yeah, that's right sweetie, I'll just go see Al and then I've got to go somewhere." Sylvie pointed towards the hallway and slowly edged that way purposefully pushing her luck with Diane. She was definitely a shit stirrer.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Diane raised an eyebrow in challenge at Sylvia, the oldest Vause new exactly what she would find if she walked into that bedroom right now although she was, as of yet, unsure as to whether her finding them together would be a blessing or a curse.

"Alex sweety I just..." Sylvia said as she burst through Alex's bedroom door.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper was awoken by Elizabeth's banging but as soon soothed when she heard Diane's voice. Now no longer wrapped up in Alex's arms she felt cold and alone. She rolled over and came face to face with Alex. As Piper lifted the covers to snuggle closer she smiled to herself as she caught a glimpse of Alex in her negligee.

"Al?" Piper whispered as she came face to face with the sleeping woman.

Alex opened one eye and shot a shy smile at Piper. "Morning." she mumbled as she began to stretch. "You are so pretty in the morning."

Piper blushed and hung her head slightly in her 'I'm shy and I don't know I'm beautiful' way.

Alex lifted her chin upwards so that their eyes met again. Alex had now opened both eyes and was looking deeply into Piper's. Blue met green and silence crept through the room enveloping them both.

"You look pretty too." Piper mumbles, barely coherent to Alex.

"What Pipes?" Alex knew that this nickname would elicit a response.

"I said you look pretty too."

"Yeah, pretty hot." Alex quipped purposefully boosting her own ego.

Piper laughed at her confidence before another wave of silence ensued. Alex was first to interrupt the silence.

"Kiss me."

Piper looked quite taken aback by Alex's request. "What?"

"I said kiss me."

"But then you'd be cheating on Sylvie."

"Ugh, fuck her, seriously. I've had enough of her and her bullshit."

Alex waited for a few moments to gauge Piper's reaction, she didn't speak or move, she just remained on the bed lay down on her side as she had been for all of their interactions this morning.

"Okay, you're scaring me now Piper, have I lost my sex appeal?" Typical Alex couldn't help but throw in a little Vause charm.

Piper snapped out of whatever zone she had put herself in and tapped Alex on the arm playfully before letting her hand drift down her arm and into Alex's awaiting hand.

"Okay."

Now it was Alex's turn to be amazed as she ran Piper's word through her head, she had to mentally skip back to the 'Kiss me' command.

The raven-haired girl seemed to lose all confidence. She froze and Piper leaned closer so that their foreheads were touching and their fingers were entwined. Alex relaxed into Piper's touch, gathered her thoughts, smiles and began leaning in to kiss Piper.

They were rudely interrupted before their lips could touch though by none other than Sylvia.

""Alex sweety I just..." Sylvia stopped dead in her tracks as she walked through the doors to find Alex and Piper forehead to forehead lost in each others eyes.

"Oh shit." Alex stated as she realized who was in the room. She sat bolt upright and then grabbed her glasses from the side. "It's not what it looks like."

"Sure it's not Alex, we all frequently wake up in a bed next to a woman who, by the way, is a little too close to you right now to just be the babysitter." She stood arms crossed and foot tapping. "I'm waiting."

Piper had sat up now and was feeling beyond uncomfortable with the situation.

"I think I'll just go and sit with Diane." She murmured before climbing out of bed and pushing past Sylvie.

"Good idea blondie." Sylvie remarked as she shut the door behind Piper.

"So are you going to explain why you were staring deep into another girls eyes?"

"It wasn't what it looked like Sylvie, I've told you this, I don't really think that warrants an explanation."

"Yes it fucking does, try explaining why the babysitter was asleep in your bed in the first place." Sylvie was slowly getting more and more aggravated and Alex knew it.

"She was staying over because it's Elizabeth's birthday." Alex got out of bed and opened the bedroom door.

"Yeah, because that makes loads of sense. Why on God's earth are you wearing that? You refused to wear that for me and yet you were wearing it for her!" Sylvie was mad now that she had seen Alex in her negligee.

Alex rubbed her tired eyes behind her glasses. "All my other pajamas are in the wash."

Sylvie took three heavy steps over to Alex's chest of drawers where she pulled a drawer open revealing a full pajama drawer. "Bullshit Alex, you'd better tell me what's going on."

Alex ran her hand through her tousled black locks and sighed deeply. "Let's not do this right now Sylvie, it's Elizabeth's birthday and I want her to have a nice day. I will ring you later, we can discuss this then."

Sylvie rolled her eyes and moved to step out of Alex's bedroom "Ugh. Fine but you'd better have a fucking good explanation for this or shit is seriously going to go down."

Alex contained her anger by grinding her teeth and clenching her fists. The pair walked silently to the front door of the apartment and Diane and Piper quickly made conversation so as the pair wouldn't know that they were listening.

Sylvia didn't even stop to say goodbye to Elizabeth she just walked straight out of the apartment. She turned on her heels as Alex stood at the door.

"I don't want to fall out about this Al, I just want us to be happy. We can get through this, I just need you to talk to me."

Alex simply hummed as she crossed her arms and shivered slightly, it was cold out in the hallway.

"Oh and you look mega hot in that babe." Sylvie left a kiss on Alex's cheek and winked as she walked away.

Alex was both confused and pissed at Sylvia. It was like living on an emotional rollercoaster, first she's angry, then reasonable, then happy. Alex was just about ready to get off this ride and then she complimented her in her negligee and she suddenly remembered why she was with this girl. Sylvie was the exact reason that Alex was feeling warm in all the right places.

As Alex returned inside she dismissed the fact that Piper and Diane were staring.

"The surprise is ruined now." Elizabeth said slightly down hearted.

"What surprise kid?" Alex asked generally not aware of what was going on.

"Yeah Liz, what surprise?" Piper added, she knew exactly what the surprise was but she wanted Elizabeth to have a good day.

"Okay, Alex, Piper, go back to bed, you'll find out what the surprise is in a minute."

Alex stood from her place on the sofa and headed back to her bedroom. "Suits me kid."

"I wonder what the surprise could be." Piper said a little too sarcastically as she headed to Alex's bedroom. She turned around shooting Diane a wink.

Diane mouthed 'Thank you' and with that Piper followed Alex into the bedroom shutting the door behind her.

Diane and Elizabeth went back to making strawberry oatmeal.

Alex crawled into bed and curled into a ball facing the wall and not the middle of the bed like before.

"Want to talk about it?" Piper asked as she slipped into bed behind her.

"Not really." Alex grumbled, her face pressed hard into the pillow.

"I'm here when you want to talk." Piper stated simply. She left it at that.

Alex groaned and rolled over to face Piper. She waited for a few seconds, which felt like minutes as the two girls stared into each other's eyes. "Kiss me." She stated just as she had done earlier.

Piper sat upright and turned slightly to face Alex. "I can't, not whilst you are with her."

Alex rolled her eyes, threw herself onto her back and slung her hands up above her head. "God Piper, I'm getting whiplash with you. You said okay earlier."

"Yes but that was this morning, my judgment was clouded by tiredness. Oh yeah and that was before I was reminded that your girlfriend, the psychopath, was in fact a very real, very scary person, who, if you do recall, punched me in the face."

Alex didn't know whether to laugh or cry right now. She let out a small chuckle. "You returned the favor if i remember correctly."

Piper just looked at Alex, there was love in her eyes but deep amounts of restraint on Piper's part. The raven-haired girl could never comprehend how much the blonde wanted to kiss her right now. "Yeah, she deserved it."

"Yeah, she did." Alex nodded knowingly.

"Let me ask you this, why are you still in a relationship with her?"

"Familiarity. No-one knows me like she does."

Piper shook her head. "You can be so stupid sometimes, you know that?"

"I've been told."

Piper just wished for a moment that Alex would open her eyes and look at what was staring her in the face.

Just as Piper was about to speak again Elizabeth and Diane entered the room with a breakfast tray each containing four bowls of strawberry oatmeal.

"Tah dah!" Elizabeth announced as she passed the tray to Alex.

"You made strawberry oatmeal for us all? Way to go kid. And here's me thinking it was your birthday."

Elizabeth's face lit up at Alex's comment. She climbed onto the bed and joined Diane who had her legs under the covers at the bottom of the bed.

After the four of them had eaten, Elizabeth and Piper walked into the living room to fetch Elizabeth's presents.

"So, you and Piper?" Diane asked her daughter keen to know what went on after they crawled into bed together.

"We aren't talking about me and Piper." Alex replied with a mouthful of oatmeal.

Diane tutted at Alex. "When I came to check on you last night, you and Piper were cuddling."

"Yeah and we were about to kiss when Sylvie burst through the doors this morning but we aren't talking about that either." Alex had a slight smirk on her face, she knew she had told her mother exactly what she wanted to hear.

"Seriously Alex?" Diane sounded a mixture of surprised and excited.

"Shh mom." Alex retorted as Piper and Elizabeth stepped into the hallway.

Piper was painfully aware of the deliberate silence that enveloped the room as she walked in. Elizabeth was oblivious.

The blonde darted her eyes between Diane and Alex searching for an answer but one wasn't given.

"I'm going to open this one first, it's from..." The youngest Vause paused as she silently moved her lips, trying to read the note written on the tag "...Piper."

As she ripped the pink wrapping paper off of the large box she gasped loudly. "A lamp, yay! Thank you Piper, now I don't have to have my big light on."

"You're welcome kid."

Diane smiled at Piper, she watched her wrap the presents last night and knew that Elizabeth would particularly love this one.

The next one she opened was from Alex. It was some brand new My little pony bed covers. Yet another thing that Diane knew Liz would love. The next she opened was the biggest of the parcels, a large Polly pocket house that Diane knew she wanted.

"Thanks mom, it's just the one I wanted, was it on sale?" Elizabeth knew money was tight within the family and even at such a young age she showed a greater awareness of money management than most teenagers.

"Let me worry about the money kid."

Elizabeth said no more, she just hugged the box tightly to her chest.

The next present to be unwrapped was from Alex again, it was a blanket that matched her my little pony bedding. The next was a present from Piper, a brand new set of princess stories in a fancy box. The last present on the pile was from Diane, a brand new set of two Polly pockets with outfits that mirrored Alex and Piper.

"Look guys, it's you two." Elizabeth said excitedly as she stood up on the bed wafting the box in Alex and Piper's faces.

"Oh yeah. Now I can be me when we play Polly Pockets and not Steve." Piper replied, referring to the male Polly Pocket Elizabeth owned.

"Hey kid, sit down a minute, there's one more present yet." Alex said as she dipped her hand down the side of the bed, she was searching for a box but as her hand touched a carrier bag she suddenly remembered another present. "Okay, maybe two."

Piper and Diane were attentive and wide-eyed as Alex pulled up a carrier bag from the side of the bed and handed it to Liz. It was perfectly wrapped in metallic pink wrapping paper with a silver bow stuck on top.

"Did you wrap that?" Piper asked, amazed at Alex's skills.

"Nope, the lady at the store did. Hope you like it kid."

Elizabeth delicately unwrapped the present and gasped loudly as she held up a genuine leather jacket which was a miniature version of Alex's complete with red tartan elbow patches.

"Thought you deserved one of your own." Alex said as she saw everyone sat on the bed mouth agape.

"Thank you Alex!" Liz squealed as she dropped the jacket and launched herself at Alex, arms wide open.

"You are welcome kid, but there's one more yet."

Elizabeth recoiled back to her previous position on the bed.

"Here yah go kid, you better not scuff these!" Alex scolded gently as a pre-warning. She then pulled a box from the side of the bed and passed it over to Liz.

Diane had already spotted the logo on the side of the box. "Alex, are you mental, they must have cost you a fortune!"

"My little sister is worth every penny." Alex said without taking her eyes off of Liz, she wanted to see her reaction.

The young brunette lifted the lid of the box carefully and then peeled back the layer of tissue to reveal her very own pair of matt black Doc Martens that matched her's and Piper's perfectly.

"Piper has a pair and I have a pair and now you have a pair too." Alex was unsure of the silence that surrounded her. "Somebody say something please."

"Wow Alex." Was all Piper could say.

"You've spent way too much Al." Diane was in shock at the amount that Alex had spent on Elizabeth.

"You let me worry about the money mom." Alex joked expressing herself in the same manner her mom had earlier.

"Thanks Al, can I wear them today?" Elizabeth asked as she leaped at Alex for a second hug.

"Sure you can kid, you can wear them whenever you want, they are yours."

Just when Alex thought Elizabeth's smile couldn't get any bigger it did.

"Will you and Piper wear yours today, and leather jackets so we can match?"

"Sure we can." Piper replied before Alex even had a chance to open her mouth.

"Right then kid, let's go and get changed and leave Piper and Alex alone for a minute." Diane knew exactly what she was doing as she shut the door behind her.

"Alone for a minute? Your mom knows about the whole kiss thing doesn't she?" Piper queried as she turned in bed.

"Yeah." Alex got out of bed and walked over to the wardrobe before grabbing a leather jacket and throwing it at Piper. "Wear this one today."

A silence enveloped the pair and for the first time it was awkward an tense. There was an elephant in the room and her name was Sylvia.

"So, looks like Elizabeth liked all of her presents." Piper mumbled as she got out of bed, just trying to lessen the tension.

"Well, my bedroom floor sure thinks so." There were bits of pin wrapping paper all over Alex's white floorboards. It stood out in contrast to the black that sat along with the white.

Piper laughed and for some unknown reason to the both of them it was a genuine laugh, not a half-hearted giggle.

"You really are an amazing big sister, you know that don't you?" Piper hummed in her lowest, sexiest voice possible before kissing Alex lightly on the cheek.

Alex held her breath as the blonde left a lingering kiss on her cheek before walking out of the door.

"Tease!" She called after her.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed. As always, please leave a review, I adore reading them. They make me smile :)


	26. Chapter 20 - Part five

A/N: So sorry for the late update. Home internet was down. It's super long and I hope you like it, you'll probably hate me by the end of the chapter but leave your outrage in a review :) Sadly no easter eggs for you I3Vauseman. Enjoy.

 **CHAPTER TWENTY Part five**

"So what if I am?" Piper called back.

Alex threw herself onto the bed. This damn girl was going to be the end of her.

Alex knew exactly what she had to do to get this girl but it wasn't all as easy as people thought. Sylvia was a cruel bitch that knew exactly how to push everyone of Alex's buttons, good and bad. The shorter woman could take Alex down in just a few words and the raven-haired woman knew that. If she broke up with her then there was the risk that Sylvie could go around spreading bullshit rumors , or there was the risk that she could go into Neptune's diner and give her boss yet more ammunition to blackmail her with.

Sylvie was a crazy bitch but no one knew her like Alex did. The raven-haired girl always told people that she loved Sylvia, or she told some that she was with Sylvie for the sex but in reality she was fearful about what would happen if she left.

Alex knew how toxic the relationship was between them but she just needed a little push to end it. Piper obviously wasn't a big enough push.

"You ready?" Piper asked as she poked her head back round the door. Alex had been so absorbed in her own thoughts that she forgot entirely about getting dressed. "Seriously Al?"

"Shit Pipes, sorry, I'll go get dressed now." The raven-haired girl grabbed her pile of clothes and dashed into the bathroom rushing to get ready for the day.

Piper could have joined Diane and Elizabeth in the living room whilst they waited for Alex but the blonde had a better idea. She grabbed Alex's make up and mirror and placed them on the bed, the mirror propped up against the black bars that adorned the bottom of the bed.

"Thanks." Alex panted as she walked into her bedroom. Her hair was slicked back into a neat ponytail aided by water.

As Alex sat to do her make-up Piper leaned forward and placed a kiss upon Alex's exposed shoulder. She let her thumb rub the area where she had just kissed and Alex shuddered a little.

"You look so pretty without make up." She said simply as she moved to rest her chin on Alex's shoulder.

"So do you." The reply was short and simple.

"You smell really good too Al." Another kiss was placed followed by the thumb rub and Alex shuddered again.

"So do you."

"Your lips look so pretty."

"So do yours."

Piper leaned in and placed a chaste kiss upon the pulse point behind Alex's ear.

Alex fought with herself not to turn around and attempt to capture Piper's with her own. She knew that Piper would turn away if she did. She made the rules of this dangerous game that she was playing, very clear. The blonde was going to tease Alex as much as she wanted and Alex wasn't allowed to retaliate.

Piper Chapman was playing dirty. She was speaking Alex's language and that was the only way that she was going to get through to her.

"Today is going to be interesting." Piper commented as she exited through Alex's bedroom door and into the living room area.

Alex sighed heavily. Today was definitely going to be interesting and torturous for the raven-haired beauty.

She carefully applied her winged eyeliner and stepped out into the living room.

"Look at that kid, you look like a mini me!" Alex said as she saw Liz wearing almost the exact same outfit as Alex.

Alex wore a plain black vest top with a lacy trim with black and grey biker jeans and of course her leather jacket and black Doc Martens.

Elizabeth was wearing a black vest top with a white outline of a my little pony character on it, black leggings and of course the brand new black Doc Martens and leather jacket.

"Aww, look at my beautiful girls, let me get a picture!" Diane seemed unbelievably happy as she pulled out her phone to take a picture.

Alex and Elizabeth stood together in front of the cream wall. Piper remained seated on the couch as Diane lifted the phone up.

"Piper, you are a Vause girl are you not? Get in the picture!" Piper beamed from ear to ear and Alex's smile grew wider as she saw Piper walking over. The three girls stood together and smiled perfectly as Diane snapped the picture and tears welled in her eyes. "This is one for the albums!" She gleamed as she viewed the image.

Piper pulled out her own phone from her pocket. "Come here Diane." The oldest Vause did as she was instructed and sauntered over to the group still cooing over the picture on the phone screen. "Selfie." Piper said as she organized everyone. Alex lifted Elizabeth up and sat her on her hip as Piper repositioned the camera. "Everyone say cheese!" Piper snapped the picture and immediately set it as her home and lock screen.

"Alright then, let's get going. Liz since its your birthday you are in the front all day." Diane knew exactly what she was doing, the same thing she had been doing for ages, she was trying to get Alex and Piper together.

Elizabeth fist pumped the air and scurried out the door followed by Diane as she grabbed her keys. Piper followed and Alex shut the door behind them.

Elizabeth raced to the car and Diane chased after her warning her not to trip. Alex let out a small chuckle at the idea that for once it wasn't her telling her that. Piper stood beside her and smiled as they made their way downstairs.

"How about cinema, then zoo then out for supper?" Diane asked as she twisted her head around to speak to Alex and Piper who were situated in the back of the car.

"Sounds good to me." Piper said and Alex simply down turned her lips slightly and nodded in an aloof manner. There was definitely something playing on Alex's mind.

As they arrived at the cinema Piper, Elizabeth and Diane made easy conversation and quickly molded their conversation into a discussion about what film they were going to see. They decided upon a kids film that Elizabeth chose as it was her birthday after all. Alex just stood and stared at the posters plastering the walls.

"We are going to get snacks Al, do you want anything?" Piper asked as she pulled Alex from her fixation.

"Uhm, yeah, get me some milk duds and a soda, I'll give you the money back later, i just need to nip to the loo." Alex spoke without looking at Piper and seemed awkward as she walked away.

Piper shot her best Vause look Alex's way and then walked to the counter where Liz and Diane were buying snacks.

Meanwhile, Alex stood facing the bathroom mirror. "Fuck." She muttered under her breath as she looked at herself. "Fuck her, fuck this." Alex threw her hands up in exasperation and then ran one through her long black locks before moving to rub her eyes, stopping just short so as not to smudge her eyeliner. She sighed once more before composing herself and heading out to the foyer where Piper, Diane and Elizabeth all stood waiting patiently.

"Good to go?" Diane asked and Alex nodded. The youngest and oldest members of the Vause family began walking away but Piper lingered to speak to Alex who seemed to have no intentions of moving.

"You alright Al?" The blonde questioned as she held out Alex's soda and Milk Duds.

"Yeah, you go on ahead, take my stuff with you please, I'll catch up in a minute, just got to make a phone call."

"Better make it count." Piper commented as she walked away wiggling her bum in the gloriously sexy manner that she new Alex loved.

The raven-haired girl couldn't help but release a playful smirk which she attempted (and failed) to hold back with her teeth. She pressed the phone to her ear and listened intently as it rang. By the fourth ring she was getting impatient and was not too pleased to be kept waiting.

'This is Sylvia's voice mail please leave a message after the tone.'

Alex sighed loudly as she waited for the tone and then gathered her thoughts when she heard the beep.

"Hey Sylvie it's me. We need to talk." With that she put the phone down and turned the phone to silent before pocketing it and walking towards into the film theater just on time.

"Hey Al, where you been?" Diane asked as Alex took the seat that had been saved in front of her.

"Had to make a phone call sorry." She hushed as she took her place next to Piper.

The movie theater darkened and the opening trailers began to play. Alex reached to grab the drink in the cup holder but Piper swiped it away before her fingers could even make contact.

"Hey, that's mine!" Alex teased playfully.

"I payed for it." Piper stated before wrapping her lips around the straw making sure Alex was watching. She lifted one eyebrow and Alex reciprocated. Piper was playing a dangerous game and Alex was about to join in.

"Well since you are wearing my black skinny jeans, I'm allowed to take them off of you is that how it works?" Alex leaned into Piper and whispered into her ear as she ran a hand up from Piper's knee to mid thigh stopping to pluck at the material before removing her hand.

Piper dropped the straw from her lips immediately and placed the soda back in the cup holder. This time Piper leaned into Alex and whispered into her ear "I guess so."

Alex wasn't expecting Piper to be so suave about it, she was sure that she was going to freak out and brush her off exclaiming that she couldn't until Alex was single.

The rest of the movie was spent in silence with Piper cheekily pinching the drink every other time Alex wanted a bit. There was also a bit of mid-movie tussling from Alex and Piper over the pack of Milk Duds that were still in Piper's possession. In the end Diane took the packet from the both of them as if they were school girl children again. They both playfully sulked at each other before laughing again.

When the movie had finished the four of them headed out to the car and then headed to the zoo.

"That one looks like you Al!" Piper teased as she pointed to a baboon.

The pair stood close, leaning on each other as they lazily stood in front of the monkey enclosure waiting for feeding time.

"No, that one over there looks like you." Alex pointed too a distant part of the enclosure.

Piper squinted her eyes hard but couldn't make out anything other than branches. "I don't see anything."

Alex took a step back and placed herself directly behind Piper. The raven-haired girl leaned in carefully and placed her lips just next to Piper's ear. The blonde's breath hitched as she felt the warmth.

"Just over there." Alex wrapped her left arm around Piper's slim, toned waist and her right hand moved to grab Piper's lifting it to point to where she meant.

The blonde stumbled over her words as Alex's breath lowered and a kiss was placed behind her ear. "I...I don't see anything."

"Never mind. It must have gone." Alex suddenly dropped everything and walked away from Piper to go and join Elizabeth and Diane.

The exasperated blonde released a breath that she didn't know she was holding and moved to join the rest of the family. "This girl will be the death of me." Piper thought to herself as Alex flashed her a smug grin.

Piper wasn't sure whether to be worried or relieved as Alex took a backseat approach for the rest of the zoo until they reached the petting zoo.

"See anything you like?" Alex queried as she sat on the stool next to Piper.

"Maybe. What's it to you?" Piper didn't even look at Alex as she spoke, instead choosing to focus on Elizabeth and the young girls interactions with the guinea pigs she held in her lap.

"What may that be?" Alex asked throwing Piper the typical Vause look.

"Oh, I bet you can guess, she's tall, dark-haired, has the most beautiful eyes and can attract quite a crowd." There was a hint of sarcasm held in the blonde's voice but Alex didn't seem to notice it.

"Yeah?" Alex asked both intrigued and confused, she expected that playing this odd game with Piper would be lengthy and not this easy to win.

"Yeah, she's over there." Piper pointed to a short distance away where a young family were stood admiring a black haired llama.

Alex simply tutted. "I should have guessed. This one plays hard to get and you just jump on to the next tall hot girl you find. I didn't peg you for that kind of girl Piper Chapman, I'll have to keep my eye on you."

"If you remember Alex, you aren't playing hard to get, you are in a relationship." With this Piper stood and walked over to interact with Liz who was more than excited about the guinea pigs. She did not seem impressed and Alex wondered for a moment if she had overstepped a mark and ruined the whole game.

Alex remained sat on the stool. She ran a hand through her thick black locks and bit her lip slightly. Her phone buzzed and she was oddly eager to see who wanted to speak with her today.

1 NEW MESSAGE - SYLVIE

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT WHAT?

She couldn't help it when a smile crept across her lips.

TO: SYLVIE

MEET ME OUTSIDE THE MALL AT SIX.

Alex typed the message out as quickly as she could and pressed send before she could go back on her intentions.

1 NEW MESSAGE - SYLVIE

FINE.

Alex knew that Sylvie was not exactly pleased by her words but this was something that needed to be done. The raven-haired girl stood and walked over to the family, crouching to the left of Piper.

"I need you to come to the mall with me later." She said to Piper as she carefully placed her knees against the cold floor.

"Why?"

"Because we need to talk and..." Alex paused to think of a better reason without telling her that Sylvia was going to be there "...I forgot to pick up Liz's last present."

"Fine." Piper sighed before standing and walking over to the rabbit pen.

Alex couldn't help but let her mind make the comparison between Sylvie and Piper and their both equally unimpressed 'Fine.'

Supper came and went without any more game playing or flirting and Alex was regretting her comment more and more. Not the one to Sylvie as she thought she would, but instead the one to Piper about playing hard to get. The realization must have hit the blonde as she was no longer playing. Alex was a grown woman capable of making her own decisions, and her own mistakes. Piper was capable of realizing when she was over stepping a mark. As fun as the little game was the blonde had realized that she was trying to steal someone's girlfriend from them and even if it was just that bitch Sylvie, it was wrong.

She took a step back from the situation and re-evaluated it. Alex was in a relationship and Piper was trying to lure her away from it, as much as Alex told her the relationship was 'complicated' she now looked at it very simply. Alex was taken. Simple as that.

After supper the four returned to the apartment for an evening of music, dancing and general jollity. Piper was invited to sleep over for another night and after some begging from Elizabeth she agreed. There would be no cuddling like there was before and Piper would tell Alex that she would sleep on the sofa.

Alex seemed indifferent to Piper's decision and remained aloof when begging was taking place.

Half past five came and went and at quarter to six Alex stood abruptly from her place on the sofa where she seemed to be sulking childishly as she watched her mom, Liz and Piper dance and laugh.

"Come and dance with us Alex." Piper had asked trying to make an effort for Elizabeth's sake.

"Not really my thing." She had said brushing it off quite casually.

Piper had raised her eyebrows and left Alex to her sulking on the sofa.

Now she seemed alive, no longer sulking but still not particularly happy.

"Where are you going?" Diane asked as Alex had pulled Piper aside from her dancing.

"We forgot one of Liz's presents, we have to go pick it up from the mall. I need to borrow the car." Alex said with a sombre expression.

"Can I come?" Elizabeth asked as she excitedly jumped about.

"Then it wouldn't be a surprise would it silly?" Piper told Elizabeth. She knew something was going on and she sure as hell knew it wasn't anything to do with Liz's birthday.

"We won't be long, I promise." Alex said as she kissed her mom and sister goodbye.

Piper repeated the motion as Alex grabbed the car keys from the bowl.

"Be back soon." Piper called as she waved goodbye through the closing apartment door.

Elizabeth and Diane went back to dancing as soon as the pair left not really caring for Alex's suspicious manner but Piper had coined on.

The pair walked in silence down the heavy metal and concrete steps and into the parking lot.

Piper was the first to break the silence when they got into the car. She couldn't stand it any longer.

"Alright Al, cut the shit, where are we really going?" Piper twisted in her seat to face Alex who was just shifting the car into reverse.

"The Mall." She said calmly as she watched the mirrors intently.

"Okay then, what for?" Piper asked realizing that that part of her statement had perhaps been true.

"To get Liz's other birthday present." She once again remained calm and gave Piper nothing to quibble about.

"I'm calling bullshit." Piper announced as she huffed loudly and crossed her arms like a kid in a tantrum, she might've even stamped her foot if she hadn't been sat cross legged.

"You can call whatever you like." Alex scoffed, she was the master of handling things completely wrong and this was no exception.

"I'm not going to sleep in your bed tonight, I'll sleep on the sofa."

"Don't be like this Piper."

"Don't be like what? A good friend? Someone who doesn't make advances on a girl who already has a girlfriend?"

"Seriously Piper, you are giving me whiplash, this morning you were all teasing and playful and now this. I don't know where I stand with you."

"You don't stand anywhere Alex, you just sit in the sidelines and watch the world go by like none of this concerns you."

To this Alex had no reply, she knew Piper was right, instead of stepping up and facing her problems she just sat back and waited for them to blow over just hoping to god that they would. Until today when she decided to actually do something and for a moment she wasn't sure if she regretted it or not.

"See, you can't even give me the courtesy of a reply when you know damn fucking well I'm right."

Alex sighed heavily, her mind was at odds with itself right now and thank goodness that Piper was too absorbed with her own rant to notice that they had gone around the roundabout three times.

"I'll sleep on the sofa, you will take the bed, don't try and argue it, you know mom wouldn't have it any other way."

Piper knew that was true but it stung slightly to know that she was going to be in Alex's bed without Alex.

"Great input on the conversation there Al, changing the subject, real smooth. You said you wanted this time to talk but so far this conversation has been pretty one sided."

Once again Alex didn't really know what to say. She couldn't just come out and say that she was dragging Piper to the mall so that she could break up with Sylvia and have Piper witness it so that she would know that she wasn't lying. It was just too risky, the whole situation could go terribly wrong and Alex's throat ran dry at the thought of Piper and Sylvie fighting again. She swallowed, hard.

"The mall will explain it all." The only words Alex could manage didn't really make too much sense.

"I really hope the brick building will be a better conversationalist than you."

Alex rolled her eyes at Piper's comment, she couldn't quite believe how much they sounded like a married couple.

Piper continued her childish sulk all the way to the mall and remained silent throughout the rest of the thankfully short journey.

Alex pulled into the parking lot and immediately, wordlessly got out of the car and began walking towards the mall, she assumed Piper would follow obediently and she did.

"You are late." Sylvie said as she tapped her foot impatiently.

"Sorry. Traffic." Was the only response that Alex gave.

"Short and sweet. Something's wrong." Sylvie folded her arms and threw a questioning look at Alex as she came closer.

"Yeah, it is, we need to talk."

"Yeah, so you said."

"It's about me and you."

"Well I guessed it wouldn't be about American literature or world peace." Sylvie quipped.

"Well, you guessed right." Alex lost her cool demeanor for a moment and let herself relax back into the state of familiarity that she knew all too well even showing a smile for old time's sake.

"So..." Sylvia pushed as the pair just stood silently for a moment.

"You know what this is about." Alex quickly realized what she was doing and pulled her iron gates back up.

Just then Piper came up behind Alex. "You have got to be kidding me." The blonde yelled as she caught sight of Sylvia and Alex talking. "We came to the mall so that you could see her didn't we. Couldn't go one day without your little sex cow eh? You could have left me at home if you were gonna come here just to fuck her." Piper could feel her rage bubbling and she did nothing to try and swallow it down.

"Piper please..." Alex began but was quickly interrupted by Sylvia.

"No fucking way Alex. No fucking way." Sylvie raised her hands and placed them atop of her own head before letting them fall limply to her sides. "I cannot fucking believe you Alex." She raised her hands once again but this time she ran them through her hair.

"Sylvie, it's not like that, just listen..." The raven-haired girl was trying her damn best not to flip out right now. She felt like her heart was being pulled between an old mule and a carthorse. She felt obligation to the old mule who had been her cart puller for so many years but the mule was no longer strong and even though she felt attached to it, it was time to retire it. The carthorse was new and unfamiliar but beautiful and strong and exactly what she needed.

"I'll listen when you want to do this privately without your one man fucking audience." She pointed to Piper who was standing right behind Alex defensively.

Sylvie walked away and for a few short seconds Alex considered following her, for what reason though she was unsure. She took a step forward and then stopped herself turning on her heel instead to talk to Piper.

"Listen Piper, I can explain..." This time Piper interrupted her.

"You can explain later, right now we have to go and pick out a present so we don't disappoint Elizabeth." Piper really couldn't care for the reasoning behind the situation. Her anger had been dispelled by the fact that Alex did not follow Sylvia when she left.

Alex just nodded. She no longer looked alive, she looked exhausted, more like dead inside. Nevertheless, she followed Piper, wordlessly, into the shopping mall where they grazed by window upon window of things that Elizabeth might like but really had no need or particular want for. It was meant to be yet another birthday surprise, they couldn't disappoint.

That was when Piper walked past the shop window filled with animals and she back tracked turning to look again. A group of guinea pigs hustled and bustled about the play pen running from one end to the other and back again.

"Al, we have to buy her guinea pigs, she loved the ones at the petting zoo, I'm sure she'd love to have her own. It would give her a sense of responsibility, she'll love it." Piper was not going to give up until Alex agreed and the raven-haired girl was already aware of this. She had suffered first hand on more than one occasion because of Piper's stubbornness.

"Mom would kill me, there would be sawdust everywhere." Alex made the comment but she knew damn well it would mean nothing to Piper. The blonde had already set her heart on buying Elizabeth guinea pigs and in all honesty Alex knew that she would love them and that Diane wouldn't be too mad after seeing how much Liz enjoyed them.

"I'll tell her it was all my idea." Piper practically had her nose pressed up against the window now.

"Damn right you will."

"Is that a yes?" Piper was almost squealing now.

"Let's go pick out some guinea pigs then." Alex couldn't help but let a grin plaster her face at Piper's excitement.

"Those two there, in the corner snuggling, let's get those." Piper jabbed her finger against the glass before darting inside the shop and locating the nearest assistant.

Alex followed obediently and as the man plucked the two unaware guinea pigs from the enclosure and placed them into a cardboard box with holes in the side and a carry handle, she went in search of a cage to keep them in. Something Piper had obviously not thought of. Alex picked out a cage package that came with all the basic things you would need to keep guinea pigs indoors plus a book on how to look after them and even a few treats and toys. It all cost a pretty penny but Alex knew it was worth it just to see the look on Piper's face right now as she cooed through the holes in the box let alone the look on Elizabeth's face when she saw them. The raven-haired girl handed the woman at the till the money and as she looked back and forth between Piper and her empty wallet she couldn't help but grin which must have seemed bizarre to the cashier as she commented on it.

"Going broke just to keep the girlfriend happy huh?" The cashier asked as she pressed the buttons on the till.

"Pardon?" Alex wasn't sure if she had heard correctly.

"I saw you through the window, she was practically begging you."

"She's not my..." Alex interrupted her own sentence to look back at the blonde and as she did she let a huge grin creep across her face. "They're actually for my sister's birthday."

"Well I hope she enjoys them." The cashier grinned as she passed Alex her change and a receipt. Alex promptly stuffed them into her wallet and pocketed it without looking which disheartened the cashier as she had scrawled her number on the back.

"Come on blondie." Alex yelled as she hefted the cage from the counter.

Piper followed obediently and Alex kept having to look back just to check she hadn't walked astray as she kept her eyes firmly trained on the guinea pigs in the box.

As the pair climbed into the car there was an odd silence, it was neither comfortable nor uncomfortable but it was somewhat expectant, they both knew what was to follow. It was once again Piper that broke the silence.

"Start the car and you can tell me all about why we were supposed to be here on the drive home."

Alex didn't reply, she just brought the engine to life and began to drive. She waited for Piper to bring up the conversation, not because she was avoiding the subject but purely because she had no clue where to start or if she would ever stop.

"Why?" Piper spoke as they pulled out of the parking lot.

"Why did I drag you here?" Alex asked, she shot Piper an exasperated glance and Piper was suddenly aware of how tired she looked.

"No. Why did you let her walk away? Why didn't you follow her?" Piper sensed an air of discomfort as she spoke knowing that this was not one of Alex's strong points.

"I've told you before Piper, it's complicated." Alex saw that as the end of the conversation, they had had the same talk quite a few times and it always ended with the same sentence. Piper would then keep quiet and not say anything other about it. Not this time.

"It's not complicated Alex, answer the question, why didn't you follow her?"

Alex sighed deeply. "Because i didn't think it was worth it."

"What wasn't worth it?"

"Us. Me and her, it's nothing. When I met you I just wanted to hold you and protect you and kiss you goodnight and she stood in the fucking way, but then she was there at the end of the day when shit got tough, the night you and I argued, she was there. When I was pissed at you about Lucy, she was there and I'm just not sure what the fuck I want anymore." Alex slammed her hands on the wheel as they hit yet another red traffic light.

"Alex look at me." Alex just turned her head towards the window even further away from Piper's gaze. "Look at me Alex!" Piper almost yelled.

"What?" Alex snapped as she whipped her head around to face the blonde.

"You look tired, do you want me to drive?" Piper looked concerned, she had lowered her voice to almost a whisper.

"No, I don't want you to fucking drive, I just wanna get out of this fucking traffic!" She snapped at Piper again and this time Piper turned away towards the window. Alex's face eased slightly and she sighed deeply. "I'm sorry Piper, I just.."

"Don't Alex." Piper left her comment at that, today had been a stressful, busy day and the blonde wanted nothing more than to curl up in bed and sleep.

The car remained silent for most of the ride. Alex spent most of the journey opening and closing her mouth just trying to figure out the right words to say so as not to fuck it up any further. She had done enough damage already. Piper spent most of the trip with her head pressed against the window fighting back tears, she had no idea why but she had an unfathomable urge to scream and cry and dig her heels into the ground. The blonde bit her lip as tears started to fall, she did not want Alex to see her this way, she didn't want Alex to feel sorry for her or want to hold her or anything like that. She wanted Alex's decision to be entirely fair and unbiased. Piper realized that she couldn't just play God at every opportunity she got, she had to sit back and let this happen, whatever this was.

Piper sniffed and disrupted the silence.

"Are you crying Pipes?" Alex reached her arm out to touch Piper but soon retracted it when the earlier scene of 'Don't Alex' flicked through her mind. Piper had sounded so hurt.

"No, I think I might be allergic to guinea pigs." This was Piper's half-hearted attempt to create sarcasm. It wasn't too successful.

The pair spent the rest of the journey in an odd silence, it wasn't uncomfortable but they both felt burdened with tiredness. As they pulled into the apartment block's parking lot Piper spoke. Her tears had long dried up but she wasn't yet willing to ask any of the hundreds of questions that ran through her head.

"Let's go play happy families." Piper said as they stepped through the huge double doors at the front of the building.

There was a million and one comments that the pair could have come up with concerning the irony of the Chapman girl wanting to play 'happy families' when she was so sick of playing it at her own home.

"We're home!" Alex announced as they swung through the door. Diane was washing up in the kitchen and Elizabeth had just gone to put her pajamas on and so she came running when she heard the front door.

"Did you get my surprise Al?"

"We sure did kid, sit down, Piper has it." Alex put a little too much emphasis on the 'we' part of the sentence which made Diane wonder.

Elizabeth dived onto the sofa excitedly and sat with her legs outstretched in front of her.

"What is it?" She asked as Piper placed the cardboard box on her lap.

"Open it and see, just be careful." Piper said as she squatted to the floor in front of Liz.

Elizabeth very carefully opened the cardboard box and gasped when she saw what was inside.

"Guinea pigs!" She squealed as she lifted one from the box.

Piper stood and lifted the other from the box and pushed the box aside placing the black guinea pig back down onto Liz's lap.

"What are they called?" She asked, her young eyes filled with delight darted between Piper and Alex.

"They don't have names yet, you get to name them kid."

Her eyes grew even wider at that and she grinned at the Little furry creatures that were squealing and squirming in her lap.

Diane came over to view the new members of the family and looked at Alex with some skepticism.

"That one is blonde like Piper and that one has black hair like Alex." Diane stated as she pointed to them.

"Oh yeah, I just chose them because they were cuddling and they looked super cute." Piper clasped her hands together clearly pleased with her choice of birthday surprise.

"I'm gonna call them Alex and Piper."

"Thats cool with me kid but I'm just gonna call them squeaky and noisy." Alex quipped as she set about sorting the cage.

Piper laughed at the idea of the names and then leaned forward to tickle the blonde guinea pig behind the ear. "Hey mini me."

Diane took a seat by Liz to share her enthusiasm whilst Piper moved to assist Alex.

When the cage was all set up , which was pretty quickly despite some slight arguments about the placement of items, the guinea pigs were placed inside.

"Look, Piper and Alex are cuddling!" Elizabeth yelled excitedly as she pointed to where the pair of animals had settled in the corner.

"Those names are gonna take some getting used to." Piper quipped as she nudged Alex. The raven-haired girl didn't seem too impressed.

"Alright then Liz, you've had a big day today so it's off to bed with you. Alex, I want a word with you later." Diane said as she took Elizabeth by the shoulders and guided her into her room.

Alex was all too familiar with that phrase and it didn't usually mean she was in trouble so she wasn't too worried, however, it did usually mean a barrage of questions.

"I haven't gotten you into trouble about the guinea pigs have I? I'll tell her it was all my idea."

"Hey Pipes, don't you worry, it's not about the guinea pigs, you saw how Liz's face lit up. Mom loves seeing Elizabeth happy." Alex reassured as she stood and tapped Piper on the shoulder. "Although mom will want to talk to me pretty soon so you might want to go and chill in my room, my iPod is in there for you to listen to and there's plenty of reading material about."

Piper stood and made to leave before Alex shouted her.

"Hey Pipes, thank you for being here and making Liz's birthday extra special, we all appreciate your company."

"Some more than others." Piper mumbled under her breath as she walked away. Alex could hear it though.

Alex dragged her fingers through her hair and then took a seat on the sofa waiting patiently for her mother who would, no doubt, be launching a spanish inquisition about whatever subject she had chosen today.

"You there Al?" Diane asked as she stepped back into the living room area heading for the kitchen.

Alex had slumped her body down past the back of the couch and so she was no longer visible unless you were stood over the old royal blue sofa.

"Yeah. I'm here."

"You know what we need to talk about right." Diane said as she sat down on the sofa next to Alex.

"I have my suspicions."

"Well then sit back and listen."

Alex slipped back into a comfortable position and only half listened to what her mom had to say, her mind was wandering about thinking about what Piper may or may not have being doing in her bed room.

"Okay Al?"

Alex brought her mind back to the room and nodded at her mom. "Yeah mom, thanks for the advice."

Diane simply nodded at Alex knowing full well that her daughter wasn't listening and that this particular situation was one she would have to figure out for herself. She stood up and walked to her bedroom. She paused to say goodnight to Alex and then disappeared into her room.

Alex walked into her bedroom knocking once gently before pushing the door open.

"Hey I just came to get some pajamas, I won't be bothering you for long." Alex announced as she stepped inside the room.

Piper was entirely oblivious to Alex's entrance because she had the headphones to the iPod in on what appeared to be the loudest volume possible. She appeared to be listening to one of Alex's favorite bands which pleased Alex immensely. Another thing that pleased Alex was the fact that Piper was sat on the bed in nothing but her sports bra and boy shorts.

"Someone is making herself at home." Alex almost shouted as she knelt on the bed ready to pull a headphone out.

"Shit sorry Al!" Piper gasped as she pulled the headphones out.

"No problem, I'm just gonna grab my pajamas and then I'll be out of your way."

Piper opened her mouth to speak but quickly closed it again when she realized she had nothing to say.

Alex shamelessly stripped down to her underwear facing away from Piper and towards the wardrobe and pulled on a loose tee and boy shorts.

Piper sat and watched in awe as Alex's slim figure appeared from under her vest top, her shoulders strong and defined and her skin so deliciously soft.

"Sorry, I forget there's people here sometimes." Alex was lying through her teeth , she knew exactly what she was doing and that it had the desired effect when she turned and saw Piper's mouth open slightly.

Piper again made an attempt to speak again but failed to form a sentence.

"Night Piper." Alex left the room and pulled the door shut behind her.

Piper really wanted to get up and follow Alex out but she didn't. She knew she would probably do more harm than good to the both of them.

Alex stumbled over and eventually came to rest on the sofa where she didn't lie down but instead sat up. She wasn't tired but didn't really feel like fighting Piper for the iPod. Instead the raven-haired girl threw her head back against the back of the sofa and stared at the swirling darkness that was the ceiling, she had a lot of shit to think about and now was the perfect time to think about it all.

She hadn't had much time to think though when Elizabeth came creeping through the living room to the kitchen to get a drink.

Elizabeth wasn't surprised to see Alex awake, this frequently happened. "Why are you still up Al?" She asked rubbing her eyes tiredly. "Piper is probably waiting for you."

Alex sighed. "You know me and Piper are just friends right?"

"Yeah, but you should be more than that."

Alex's eyes shot open. "I have Sylvia remember."

"Yeah, you should get rid of her."

Alex turned her head to her young sage. "Come sit with me for a minute Liz."

Elizabeth came and sat beside Alex with a glass of water in her hand a sigh upon her lips. Sometimes Alex couldn't believe that another person had been involved in the making of this child as she seemed to be the miniature version of her mother.

"Alex, I want you to be happy. Mom says you don't need presents for your birthday as long as everyone is happy, but you aren't happy and I want you to be."

Alex sighed, "I don't know what to tell you kid."

"Don't tell me anything Alex, do something about it."

Alex tilted her head at Elizabeth wordlessly.

Elizabeth looked at her older sister and then passed her the phone from the coffee table. "You know what you have to do Alex, Sylvie doesn't make you happy anymore, Piper does."

It was daft to be receiving such advice from a seven year old but it finally made sense. "Thanks kid."

Elizabeth walked away wordlessly.

She lifted the phone to her ear and on the third ring it picked up.

"Sylvia, about earlier...yeah...we still need to talk..."

A/N: I know you all hate me now but ah well, at least I updated. Hope you enjoyed it, please leave a review :)


	27. Chapter 21

A/N: Here's the next chapter guys. Hope you like it. Not much Vauseman, bit angsty and such but either way I hope you all like it. It's what you've been waiting for.

 **Chapter Twenty-One**

 _"Sylvia, about earlier...yeah...we still need to talk..."_

"I'm outside your apartment block." Alex was rudely interrupted and for a moment the wind seemed to have been knocked from her sails.

"You're what?"

"I'm outside the apartment building, let me in."

"You know damn well you aren't supposed to be in the apartment."

"Yeah but you said you needed to talk and I don't see the point of doing this over the phone when we can do it face to face."

Alex saw her point, breaking up was definitely something they were probably better off doing face to face but she couldn't help wondering if Sylvia knew what 'this' was already thus eradicating the need for the conversation in the first place.

"Fine, I'll buzz you up."

Alex hung up not bothering to wait for a reply.

Less than two minutes later Sylvia was strutting into the Vause living room acting like she owned it.

"Sit down Sylvia."

"Sofa, lap or face?" She asked raising her eyebrow in the sexy manner that she knew Alex adored. Or used to adore. Alex noticed it herself, Sylvie raised the eyebrow and she felt nothing, she instead had the overwhelming urge to run into her bedroom and watch Piper do the exact same thing. She loved that. She loved Piper.

"Sofa."

"Or, we could take it to your bedroom, I know how much you like it in there. Or is that blonde skank curled up in your bed again." She was referring to Piper and Alex was very much aware. The raven-haired girl darted her eyes between Sylvie and her bedroom and she hoped to God that Sylvia didn't plan on checking.

Grinding her teeth together she managed to seethe the next sentence. "No, we are going to do this out here because I know exactly what would happen if we were in my room. You are here so we can talk not so we can fuck."

"Well, that makes a change then doesn't it? It's usually the other way round." Sylvia had not yet sat down which unnerved Alex, she knew damn well that if the shorter woman were to make a dash to her bedroom she would most definitely find Piper sat on the bed wearing barely any clothes.

"I guess, sit down please."

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper had long taken the headphones out, she had exhausted the list of songs that she was familiar with and she wasn't endeavoring to stretch her music taste tonight. She instead took up Alex's second offer; reading material. She glanced around the bedroom settling on more than one stack of books as her well trained blue eyes scanned the spines. They all seemed to be classics, which, due to Alex's taste in music, surprised her, she had pegged her for a gruesome crime thriller kind of girl but Piper couldn't have been more wrong. She saw everything from Pride and Prejudice to Tess of the D'Urbervilles but there was one particular book that had caught her eye and that was the closed notebook on the bedside table. She remembered reading a short passage a long while ago that she thought might have been about her.

Piper's hand skimmed the notebook's front cover as she felt the indents of the little doodles on the front. Black ink adorned the green striped cover in the form of hearts and roses.

She knew she shouldn't pry but she couldn't help herself. 'If it's about me then I have the right to read it' she told herself as she lifted the book from its place. The blonde took a deep breath in and thumbed the pages flicking through the book quickly to find the familiar words.

"And her eyes shone like the water's reflection, calming and soothing. She smiled at me with fear in her eyes and lied to me. The words fell out of her mouth like shards of broken glass, cutting her as she spoke and my soul cried for her pain. Her blue eyes shot with something else now, ripples in the surface of the water giving away the storm that was brewing underneath."

There they were, she swallowed hard unsure as to whether she wanted to continue on but eventually curiosity got the better of her and she read on.

"The storm was one I so wanted to calm. I wanted to take her lips in mine and make her stand motionless before me. But the storm was unreachable, untouchable and so fierce."

After this there seemed to be a few lines that were scribbled over as if she hadn't liked the words. Piper was curious as to what they said but she knew she couldn't ask Alex because then Alex would know he had been prying. She continued reading.

"I had to let it come to me, and I did. It came too close though and I felt myself drawn to it. I wanted to chase it to the ends of the earth and back again."

Piper looked somewhat confused at the page she held before as she saw another section of writing scribbled down in blue pen.

"And it would appear that it wanted to chase me too. Blonde hair, blue eyes, a heart of gold and a killer smile. Tease. I'm in love with a perfect storm."

It occurred to Piper that this must have been what Alex was doing this morning when she wasn't getting dressed. A small piece of paper was wedged in between the binding at the top of the page and as she pulled the book open a little more it fell out on to the bed. It was the first note that Piper had left Alex as an apology. She folded the paper back up and opened the notebook again to shove it back in, that was when she noticed the scribbled jagged lettering at the top of the page in blue ink that read: 'Fucking Piper Chapman.' Piper didn't really know whether to be flattered or offended. She assumed that Alex had written it after the teasing this morning when Piper left the room to change.

She heard footsteps across the landing and quickly closed the notebook returning it to its rightful place. It was Elizabeth returning to bed, she had been startled by her footsteps earlier when she walked into the kitchen, presumably to get a drink. Piper was all too familiar with the sound of Liz's footsteps and yet this time it put her on edge. It wasn't fear as such, more like anticipation. She listened to Liz's door close and then heard Alex's voice start up again. Piper stood and made her way towards the bedroom door pressing her ear to it as she listened to Alex's conversation. She couldn't really hear much just mumbling and then the room fell silent. Piper thought for a moment about backing off and taking a seat on the bed again but then she heard the familiar sound of the slightly creaky hinges of the apartment door. The blonde panicked for a moment worried that Alex had just left the apartment but she was quickly soothed by Alex's voice.

It didn't take long for Piper to realize that Alex wasn't alone in the living room.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Sylvie raised an eyebrow at Alex's demeanor. It did nothing to calm her instead pissing Alex off that little bit more.

"Sit down Sylvie, on the couch." She demanded jabbing a finger into the foam fabric covered cushions.

"Wow! Serious." Sylvie quipped holding her hands above her head in a kind of defeat. She sat down on the sofa next to Alex. This immediately calmed the rave-haired girl somewhat.

"We need to talk." Alex clasped her hands together rubbing her thumbs against each other looking anywhere but at her soon to be ex.

"You keep saying."

"We need to break up."

"Well you are short and to the point. It's about that blonde skank isn't it?"

"It's nothing to do with her." Alex raised her voice, she was getting defensive. She snapped her eyes up to meet Sylvie's.

"It fucking is, isn't it? I can see it in your eyes." Alex eyes were glazed over, there was no emotion there, no raw hurt or sadness or even lust anymore.

"Bullshit. There is nothing between me and her, never has been, never will be." Alex was lying through her teeth but Sylvie wasn't to know that. "It's about us Sylvie, we've been going downhill for months now. Haven't you noticed that I don't say I love you?"

"I thought that was because you were trying to keep your hard ass exterior." Tears were welling up in her eyes as she spoke. Alex didn't let her guard down though.

"It's because I don't love you anymore Sylvie. In fact, I'm not sure we ever were not now that I..." She stopped herself in her tracks not wanting to delve any deeper.

"Say it Alex, just fucking say it." Sylvie was rubbing her eyes frantically with the backs of her hands trying to fight the hot pin pricks of tears that threatened to fall down her cheeks. She sounded angered.

"We're over Sylvie."

"Because? I'd at least like a better reason for this than you aren't in love me anymore. I know that's a damn lie, the sex has been great."

"A relationship is about more than sex Sylvie and there are no other reasons than that, it's simple Sylvie, I just don't love you and I have to admit I don't think I ever have done and I'm so sorry we dragged it on this far."

"So these past two years have just been mindless fucking?" Alex thought about it for a moment, she couldn't remember the last time they spend the night in a bed together just being there for each other. She couldn't remember the last time she didn't leave straight after sex, there was no basking in the afterglow.

"I'm sorry Sylvia, we have to end this." Sylvie knew she meant business now, she never used her proper name.

"Fine, just know this Alex, you have fucking ruined me. Watch your fucking back." The tears in her eyes were all dried up and her eyes were darkened not by lust but by pure rage. Her fists clenched and she stood up towering over Alex for a moment before Alex stood.

"Please don't be like this Sylvie." Alex reached her hand out to touch Sylvie's arm but he whipped it away before contact could be made.

She seethed. "Like what Alex? I thought exes are supposed to hate each other right?" Her thinly veiled attempt at sarcasm was shot down by the growl in her voice.

Alex couldn't say a thing, she just dropped her arm back down to her side and followed Sylvie to the door.

"I'll see you around, bitch!" She almost spat the words as she stamped down the hallway.

Alex waited for a moment listening for the familiar sound of the front double doors of the apartment building opening and closing and then she shut the apartment door. She leaned her head against it sighing heavily before she walked over to the fridge. She popped open a beer using the granite work surface as a bottle opener. The clinking of the bottle cap against the black flooring cut through the unwelcomed silence followed by a few deep glugs as Alex downed the bottle dropping it into the bin before she walked towards her bedroom door.

-0-0-0-0-0-

"Sit down Sylvie, on the couch." Came Alex's voice, she knew she wasn't alone but she couldn't think of who she could be with.

"Wow! Serious." A familiar voice bellowed, she couldn't quite place the voice though, the door muffled the sounds.

"We need to talk."

"You keep saying." Still not ringing any bells for Piper.

"We need to break up." Fuck, she thought, she's talking to Sylvie. At hearing that line though Piper couldn't help but pause her breathing desperately waiting for the reply. Alex was breaking up with Sylvia.

"Well you are short and to the point. It's about that blonde skank isn't it?" Piper gasped loudly against the door silently praying to any deity that she hadn't been heard.

"It's nothing to do with her." Alex seemed defensive. What was so wrong about this being about me? Piper thought to herself. She was so used to being the center of attention but sadly in a sort of disappointing negative kind of way.

"It fucking is, isn't it? I can see it in your eyes." Sylvie's words flew out like spikes and the thought of the pair sitting and staring eye to eye brought a shiver to Piper's spine.

"Bullshit. There is nothing between me and her, never has been, never will be."

Piper heard Alex's words loud and clear. They didn't sound muffled like all of the other words she had heard. Clarity. The blonde took a step back from the door, the words resonating in her head _never has been, never will be._ She was hurt, was this just a game to Alex. Piper stopped her breathing for a moment as the words ran through her head. I shouldn't have been so stupid. Alex Vause would never have wanted me for anything more than a sex toy to play with until she jumped onto the next girl that caught her eye. The exact same thing had happened to Sylvia and for a God awful moment Piper sympathized with her. She wasn't going to let Alex Vause get to her that easily although she already felt warm tears rolling down her face. She moved to sit on the bed and her tears ran freely down her cheeks, for a while she didn't bother swiping them away, she let them roll until they tickled her neck and then she stopped.

The blonde took a minute to consider her options, she could storm out of the room and leave but this risked more abuse from Sylvia, a show from Alex and she would have to confess that she was eavesdropping or she could stay where she was, try and sleep it off and deal with all this shit in the morning. Since Piper was in fact a Chapman and only an honorary Vause she did the second thing crawling into Alex's bed, pulling the sheets up over her head, scrunching her eyes tightly closed and willing this all to go away.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex opened the door carefully in case Piper was asleep. All of the lights were off and the blonde's messy hair was sprawled all over the pillow, the sheets were hitched up to her neck.

The raven-haired girl smiled to herself as she slipped into the covers next to Piper. Alex curled her body into the back of the blonde's noting as she did how perfectly they seemed to fit as if they were meant to be. She leaned over Piper and placed a kiss upon her cheek.

"You have a girlfriend." Piper mumbled pretending not to have heard the whole saga that had occurred.

"Not anymore kid. Not anymore." Alex replied pressing her face into the mess of hair on the back of Piper's neck. She blew gently across her neck making the blonde shudder in response. Alex smiled.

Things were looking up.

A/N: Hope you guys liked it. They finally broke up! Yay! Leave a review as always guys. I love reading them.


	28. Chapter 22

A/N: Sorry for not updating in so long. Uni life gets in the way so my mind is on writing other things but here's a super short chapter that you will all hate me for. That being said you will all be pleased to know that they will kiss in the next chapter so you all have that to look forward to, also I'm planning a series of one-shots based on songs so look forward to that too.

 **Chapter Twenty-Two**

"Great." Piper didn't sound too thrilled about it.

Alex sat up in bed. "Seriously Piper! I thought you might have been a little more excited about this? You've been pushing me to do this and now I have and you couldn't give a shit."

"I didn't push you to anything Alex, I told you what you needed to know and then I took a step back. I let you make the decision; I knew damn well if I pushed you it would just bite me in the ass. You'd throw it back at me one day."

"But you were teasing and flirting and provoking me."

"Oh, so now you're blaming me for your own lack of self-control? You know damn fucking well that your relationship with her was toxic. With or without me you are better off without her." Piper sat up now too.

"What have I done that has pissed you off so much? Tell me that." Alex was trying not to raise her whisper shouting any higher or she might wake the rest of the apartment.

"We'll talk in the morning Alex." Piper turned over and hitched the sheets up over her head.

Alex grunted and turned away from Piper taking her glasses off and slamming them angrily onto the bedside cabinet. "Classic Chapman." She huffed and then let out a small quiet laugh afterwards.

Piper let the tears fall and bit down on her bottom lip to silence her cries.

The pair slept back to back not touching or speaking as if the dead body of their friendship lay between them.

When Alex awoke the next morning Piper wasn't in the bed, her clothes weren't in a pile on the floor like they were the day before and her bag was nowhere to be seen.

Alex didn't know what to feel. She didn't know whether to be relieved, annoyed or just downright sad. She let out a frustrated groan and buried her head into her pillow grinding her teeth together and clenching her fists.

The door opened tentatively and Elizabeth stepped in. "Mom told me to bring you this Al, she said you are gonna need it."

Alex rolled over to face the young girl and reached for her glasses pushing them onto her face messily and scraping her hair back with her fingers. "Just put it there kid. Thank you and tell mom thanks too."

Elizabeth seemed concerned by the look on Alex's face and let out a meek smile as she slid the hot cup of coffee onto the bedside table. She turned to leave without saying another word but Alex called her back.

"Hey Liz. Have you seen Piper this morning?"

Elizabeth seemed to flinch a little at the question and Alex was entirely unsure why.

"She's in the living room crying."

Alex sighed and slowly closed her eyes. She let out a breath that she didn't know she was holding and that wave of unfamiliar emotions flowed over her once again. Elizabeth left the room shutting the door behind her and Alex repeated the motion of groaning into the pillow, grinding her teeth and clenching her fists.

Now she was unsure of what to do. Did she go out and face a crying Piper who was already probably being consoled by Diane or did she hide out in her bedroom until Piper left? Looking around Alex couldn't see anything that belonged to Piper and so she guessed she wouldn't have a reason to come back into the room. Option number two was seeming more and more attractive. On the other hand, she didn't want to blow whatever this was with Piper. She downed the coffee in one wincing as she felt the tip of her tongue tingle and the back of her throat burn slightly. She made no effort in choosing her outfit selecting a simple white v neck tee and black skinny jeans. She scraped her hair back into a messy ponytail and quickly drew on her eyeliner not bothering with any other make-up.

As she stepped into the living room it was clear that Piper was uncomfortable with her presence. Her eyes were red and puffy obviously from when she had been crying. The blonde shuffled uncomfortably in her seat when she made eye contact with Alex diverting her gaze quickly. Diane had moved to the kitchen and Elizabeth was sat on the floor playing with her new guinea pigs. The pair stood in an awkward silence for a short while until Diane caught Alex's attention and gave her that look that said it all. Alex shrugged her shoulders. She hadn't really ever been in a situation like this before and that seemed increasingly common with Piper; firsts.

"Well I think I've outstayed my welcome I think I'd best be going." Piper stood to leave and Alex immediately noticed her bag full of clothes that sat next to the sofa. The raven-haired girl was immediately aware that Piper had fully considered leaving the house before Alex had even got up out from bed.

"Don't be silly Piper, you are always welcome here, you could never possibly outstay your welcome." Piper gave a meek smile and continued anyway grabbing the bag form the side of the sofa.

"Thank you for having me the past few says Diane, I have had a lovely time but I really best be going. My mom will be worried about me." Piper knew just as soon as the words had slipped off of her lips that everyone knew it was a lie. Carol was never sober long enough to even think about where her daughter might be and Piper had no intentions of going home. She planned on heading to Polly's for a few nights.

"Well you are welcome any time dear." Diane said as she turned back to her dishes. As she turned she glanced at Alex mouthing at her 'Drive her home.'

Alex stepped towards Piper. "I'll drive you home."

Piper felt the familiar tears prick in her eyes as Alex's words of the previous night resonated in her mind. "No Alex, you have done enough." She tried to force herself to make it sound genuine but she couldn't bring herself to do some. It was laced with spite and sarcasm and sounded as if it was hissed rather than spoken.

"I'm driving you home Piper, we need to talk." Piper rolled her eyes hearing Alex's words, she had heard that phrase more than enough over the past few days and she knew exactly where it led them every damn time. Alex would get annoyed and Piper would cry.

The blonde moved towards the door but the raven haired girl got there first opening the door and gestsuring with her hand into the empty hallway. Piper sighed and stepped out, she wasn't going to get out of this.

"See you later Elizabeth." Piper added trying to sound chipper.

The pair walked down the steps in silence. Piper sure as hell wasn't going to be speaking first, she wasn't sure what she would say or whether she would be able to stop if she even found where to begin. She wasn't sure if Alex was aware of why she was acting this way but she had given her the whole night to figure it out, it wasn't her fault if she had wasted the night sleeping instead of figuring it out. She was beginning to regret staying the extra hour at the Vause apartment and not leaving when she swore to herself she would.

The pair clambered into the car unrelenting in their silence. Not uncomfortable as such but not welcome that's for sure. It wasn't as if there was an elephant in the room it was more like they had both forgotten how to speak entirely.

"Let me take the bus." Piper finally spoke as they stepped outside the apartment building.

"No, Piper. Do you really think that my mom would forgive me if I just let you leave and walked straight back up there?" She pointed at the apartment building they had just come out of as they headed towards Diane's car.

"Do you really think any of this is anything to do with your mom? Really?" Piper was doing the typical wide eyed ice princess uptight thing she did.

"No, it doesn't Piper but she seems to be playing a pretty big part in this right now, you want to talk to her more than me, perhaps she's the one you should be flirting with." Alex meant the comment in a sarcastic tone but as she raised her voice it just sounded downright spiteful.

"Oh really Alex? You're gonna be like this? I talk to your mom because she listens to me Alex, she listens to all my shit which if you haven't noticed, my mom doesn't. She listens to what I have to say and she agrees with me!"

"About what Piper? Tell me, talk to me!"

"She agrees with me that you are beyond stupid for not seeing exactly what's in front of you Alex. She agrees that you were too wrapped up in sex with Sylvia that you overlooked the opportunity of us. Maybe, just maybe Alex if you weren't knuckle deep in your ex-girlfriend then you would have stopped to listen to me." Piper knew exactly what she was saying even if she knew in her heart of hearts that Alex did listen sometimes.

"Listen, Piper? I did listen and I cared. I still care, I cared way too much Piper, way more than I should have ever done and it was risky. I cared that much that I left my damn girlfriend for you Piper, can't you see that. Or are you too self-absorbed in your own sorrows that you completely overlooked the fact that I was falling head over heels in…" Alex stopped herself before she could say anything more.

"In what Alex?" Piper knew what she was going to say but she was way too annoyed to even acknowledge the fact that she was going to say the word 'love'.

"I like you Piper and you know that, I broke up with my girlfriend for you."

"Oh so this is my fault now is it? You didn't break up with her because you weren't in love with her anymore like you said?" It slipped out of her mouth before she could even stop it.

"Like I said?" Alex's eyes widened. "You were fucking listening?"

Piper was quick on the mark. "You were loud enough Alex, I bet the people next door heard, I'm surprised you didn't wake your sister for God's sake."

Alex had no clue how loud they were last night and there wasn't enough time to speak to her mother this morning but the look Diane gave her said it all. She had no clue what to say next, she was backed into a corner. She opened her mouth to speak but couldn't make the words come out. Instead she stepped forward toward Piper.

"No, Alex, just fucking don't. Try speaking to me when you actually have something to say." Piper stormed off toward the bus stop and Alex had no choice but to let her walk away.

She ran her fingers through her hair and sighed loudly. There was that feeling again, the one that made her feel like she wanted to throw up, cry and scream all at the same time. She settled for stamping her foot and sighing loudly pushing as much air through her nose as humanly possible without passing out.

She was dreading having to walk back through those apartment doors and having her mother say those three words that were inevitably going to spill from her lips the moment she walked through the door.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper stood at the bus stop for almost an hour before she realised that the services were down for the day, she stopped for a minute to think about going back to the apartment but then she thought about the fact that Alex hadn't followed her or even bothered to try and make this right and so she began walking away toward the next bus route to see if that service was functioning.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex grinded her teeth together as she climbed the concrete and metal staircase that ran the height of the building. She pushed the door open tentatively and dropped the car keys into the bowl. Diane's eyes immediately shot up to meet the forlorn and slightly pissed off looking girl that stood in the door way.

"You know I have to say it Alex."

"I know mom."

"You fucked up."

"I know mom."

A/N: There you go then guys. Again sorry it was so short and even more sorry that it was probably rubbish but I felt like they needed to get some shit out on the table before everything sorts itself out.


	29. Chapter 23

A/N: Big thanks to all of you for your patience. I have been mega busy over the past couple of weeks and I had two uni assignments in for last week. Here's the chapter you've all been waiting for and as far as I'm aware it's my longest yet. Thank you to all of you who reviewed and as always, keep 'em coming. Happy reading guys

 **Chapter Twenty-Three**

"You know we have to talk about this don't you."

Alex slumped down onto the sofa next to her mom and immediately began crying.

"I just don't know what to do mom. I fucked up."

Diane hated seeing Alex this way, despite Alex's tough exterior she was still always going to be mommy's little girl.

"You can fix it hunny, you fucked up but Piper always forgives you. She's got more heart than sense that girl." Alex let out a meek smile knowing her mother was right about Piper. She had a huge heart and was always too forgiving, well, too forgiving to Alex at least.

"I don't know though mom, she seemed pretty pissed. I don't know what's up with her, I don't know what I've done to hurt her like this." She buried her face in her hands again and stifled another sob. The last few days had been physically and mentally exhausting. Last night was the one time she actually felt free.

"It's not what you have done but perhaps what you've said." Diane of course knew exactly what Alex had said to hurt Piper. Diane stood to walk to the kitchen. "I'll make you another coffee. God knows you look like you need it."

Alex nodded but furrowed her brow at what her mother had said. She ran the words through her mind waiting for her brain to come up with some answers. She thought about the fact that Piper had overheard the conversation her and Sylvia had last night.

"Shit." The raven-haired girl cursed as she stood up abruptly making Liz jump slightly. "I'll be in my room." Alex almost yelled as she dashed through the living room and into the bedroom.

"She figured it out." Liz looked up at her mom and spoke very matter-of-factly.

Diane let out a breathy laugh and nodded at Elizabeth. "She did indeed. That's my girl."

Elizabeth giggled too and went back to playing with her toys smiling over at her guinea pigs.

The oldest Vause moved to go and give Alex her coffee and Elizabeth crawled on her hands and knees and looked into the guinea pig cage. "They'll be together soon guys, just like you two and then we can all be happy." The two guinea pigs were sat snuggling in the corner of the cage and they both squeaked as if to agree with Liz's statement.

Diane knocked tentatively on the door to Alex's room just as Elizabeth had done this morning.

"Come in." Alex sounded flustered and as Diane stepped into the room she appeared to be ripping her room apart. Her bed was unmade and her bedside table drawers were all open. Alex was on her hands and ks at the side of the bed looking under it and reaching her hand under every nook and cranny she could.

Diane placed the cup down on the bedside table at the other side of the bed and then walked around to stand behind Alex. "Lost something hunny?"

Alex whipped her head around to look at her mother. Her eyes were no longer puffy from crying but still red. She seemed panicked and her cheeks matched the red of her eyes.

"Calm down Al, what have you lost?"

"My notepad. The one I keep at the side of the bed. I can't find it anywhere!"

"Calm down Al, it probably just fell underneath the bedside table or something, here let me lift it and you can look." Diane leaned over Alex as she lifted the bedside table high enough for Alex to properly see under. There it was, stood upright pressed against the back wall of her room. No wonder she couldn't feel it.

"Got it!" She sounded ecstatic.

"Great, see, now you can calm down." Diane gently placed the table back down and stood up straight.

Alex stood up to face her mom. "Thanks mom. You can go now."

Diane crossed her arms and shook her head at Alex. "You figured out what you said wrong yet?"

Alex threw the notebook onto the bed and straightened out her clothes. "Not quite yet mom but I'm going to. I need to do this by myself for once. If me and Piper are going to be together then I need to figure this out."

Diane smiled widely at what Alex had just said. "That's my girl." She whispered to herself as she left the room.

Alex didn't even bother making her bed again as she threw herself down on it. She grabbed a pen from the bedside table drawer and flipped to that page that she knew all too well as was far too familiar with.

"Perfect storm." She whispered to herself as she scanned her eyes over the page. "I fell in love with a perfect storm."

She moved to turn the page so that she could begin jotting ideas down and a piece of paper fell out. It wasn't something that she had written but it was definitely paper from her notebook.

It read: It's great to know that I don't mean a thing to you. The blonde skank just wanted to tell you thanks for defending me. NOT! Seriously don't come running. I won't bother you anymore. There's no point me hanging around when apparently. "There's nothing between me and her, never has been, never will be." And there I was thinking that maybe, just maybe I meant something to you. Clearly not. Goodbye Alex.

"Fuck!" Alex screamed as she punched the pillow next to her hard. She had to chase her, she had no other option. She had to save this. Now she knew exactly what she had said wrong and knew just how spectacularly she had fucked up. A tear rolled down her cheek and she swiped it away with her sleeve. She had to follow Piper. She needed to go and find her.

The raven-haired girl grabbed her mobile phone and hastily dialled Piper's number. It was the one number she actually knew off by heart.

"Pick up Piper, please pick up. Come on." The phone didn't even ring. It just went straight to voicemail.

"Fuck." She yelled again. Piper had either blocked Alex's number or her phone had gone dead. She dashed out of the room quickly , ignoring the cup of coffee left on the side.

"Figured it out now hun?" Diane asked as Alex dashed around the living room grabbing and thrusting her shoes on.

"Yeah. More like Piper told me." She held up the piece of folded paper in her hand before grabbing her leathers and keys and heading out. She had to work later on tonight so she didn't have too much time to spare but she was damned if she was going to let that stop her finding Piper. She yanked her leathers on regretting putting her shoes on first, pulled her helmet on and jumped aboard her trusty bike kicking it into action with a roar.

She headed to the first place she could think of: Piper's home. Her mind was a mess and she couldn't imagine anywhere else Piper might be even though there were a million and one places that Piper would much rather be.

As Alex arrived she looked straight up to Piper's bedroom window but there wasn't any sign of her. She climbed off of her bike and as she neared the door she noticed an unfamiliar car parked in the driveway. One she hadn't seen before. She was hesitant to knock on the door as she didn't really want to know what or who was behind that door but she had to do this. For Piper.

She knocked tentatively and heard yelling from behind the door. It was quite clearly Carol's drunken voice she could hear and for a moment she was expecting to hear Piper's voice.

"You can't just waltz in here after all this time. I told you not to bother coming back here."

Alex heard a bottle smash and her mind darted back to the image of Piper's hand which she had noticed recently had scarred. Her eyes fogged and before she knew it she was walking straight through the front door. She stormed directly into the kitchen where she saw Bill holding Carol in his arms. She seemed to have passed out dropping her empty wine glass as she fell.

"Bill?" Alex asked as she stood there confused. "Where's Piper?"

"I was about to ask the same question." He looked just as confused as Alex and he motioned with his head towards his unconscious wife. Alex took the suggestion and stepped carefully over the shards of glass left in a mess on the kitchen floor and lifted Carol by the ankles following Bill as they carried her to the living room sofa. The pair remained awkwardly silent until Carol was placed down onto the sofa.

Alex took a deep breath in. "You were about to ask where Piper was? Didn't she come home earlier? I offered her a lift but she refused."

"Carol just told me that Piper hasn't been home in days."

"Yeah, she's been at my apartment with me. She hasn't stayed home a lot lately; she's been strung out a lot since you left. She tries to hide it but you can still see it behind her eyes. Speaking of which, why did you leave?"

Alex is momentarily distracted by her own train of thought.

"I had to… it's a long story and I would be more than happy to explain but I need to see Piper. Do you know where she might be?"

"No, like I said she left my apartment over an hour ago. She hasn't picked up or returned any of my calls so far. This was the first place I thought to come although god knows why, it always seems to be the last place she wants to be recently."

"Isn't she at Polly's?"

"I haven't checked, me and Polly don't really get on."

"Well, one of us needs to check and one of us needs to stay with Carol."

Alex shot a death glare at Bill, she was stuck between a rock and a hard place and she was not pleased at all.

"Ugh. I'll take Polly's." Alex folded her arms and walked towards the door.

"Wait, Alex. Don't tell Piper I'm here, not yet, I might have to disappear again and I don't want to hurt her."

"I wouldn't worry about that; I've already done that for you."

"Secrets are best kept Alex."

She rolled her eyes as she stepped out of the front door. She didn't bother climbing back on her bike she instead decided upon walking the short way to Polly's creating a million and one scenarios in her mind and running through each and every one of them making sure she had the right things to say in every instance. She never for a second stopped to think that Piper may not even be at Polly's place.

She banged heavily on the front door, confident that she knew exactly the right thing to say.

Polly answered. "Hello?"

"Is Piper here?"

"Well you are straight to the point aren't you? No, she isn't. Who are you anyway?"

"I'm Piper's erm… Friend. Well, she babysits my sister."

"And you want to know if she is here because?" Polly was using her best sassy voice and crossing her arms but it didn't seem to faze Alex.

The raven-haired girls eyes were darting all about the place and she was shuffling her feet around uncomfortably, she was visibly distracted. "She was at mine earlier and we fell out I think and she wouldn't let me give her a lift home."

"And so therefore you assume she's here." Polly looked at Alex as she kicked the pathway beneath her awkwardly. "Have you checked her house, you know she could be there." Alex's eyes moved anywhere but near Polly. She had way too many thoughts running through her head right now. She knew if Polly was lying she would have just shut the door in her face. "I'm sorry, are you on something?"

Alex took a step back from the front door. "No, I'm just… distracted. I tried home but she wasn't there, just Carol and… well have you heard from Piper recently?"

"No, I rang her about an hour ago but she wouldn't answer. It just went straight to voicemail. I figured she was with some guy or something."

Alex clenched her jaw at the idea of Piper with 'some guy'. What if Polly was right? What if she had just gone to the nearest guy's house and taken her stress out on him? She couldn't bear the thought. Her mind flooded with a million more thoughts and she just couldn't think straight anymore.

"Thanks, erm… Holly… let me know if you hear from her please… bye." Alex turned away from the door and started to jog up the driveway and away from a very confused Polly.

"It's Polly and how am I supposed to get hold of you? I don't even know you!" She tutted as she shut the door behind her pulling her phone out of her pocket immediately jabbing at Piper's name on the screen. She waited for it to ring but it just went straight to voicemail. She began to worry.

It was very uncharacteristic of Piper not to answer her phone. She always thought the worst when her phone rang although knowing Piper's family it was easy to see why she would jump to such a conclusion.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Piper stood at the bus stop for over an hour before heading to the next bus route. It was that awkward time of year when the weather didn't have a clue what to do and it rained a lot. She would be daft though, to say that it wasn't her favourite time of year. She loved the idea of getting soaking wet and then heading home to get into a nice hot bath and then climb into warm fuzzy pyjamas. Today the thought didn't seem so appealing though. She wasn't sure whether it was the thought of going home that was unappealing or the idea of spending a night without Alex.

She stood at the bus stop at the next bus route for yet another hour until she finally gave up and began walking home. It would take her almost two hours to walk home all the way across town but she had no other choice. Or did she? She pulled her phone from her pocket guessing she had just enough money for a cab only to discover that her phone was completely dead. She vaguely remembered thinking about needing to charge it this morning before breaking down when she saw Diane give her that mothering look. If only she had done. It was now freezing cold, raining and she was in an unfamiliar and creepily desolate part of town. Today just couldn't get worse for Piper.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex jogged straight back to Piper's house back to an anticipating Bill who was waiting for news.

"She wasn't there." Alex panted as she bent over in the driveway with her hands on her thighs.

Bill furrowed his brow as he stood in the front doorway. They both stand for a moment waiting fror inspiration to hit but no such luck.

Alex's phone rang and she couldn't pull it out of her pocket quick enough hoping to God that it was Piper that was on the other end of the line. It was George.

"I'm not supposed to be working tonight… No… Ugh… Stacey has a hangover, she isn't ill… Yes I need the money… Yes I want to keep my job… Yes fine, I'll be in.. yeah six o'clock shift… Bye." She was evidently getting agitated by the person on the other end of the phone which made it obvious that it wasn't Piper. Bill quickly caught the drift as Alex rolled her eyes.

"Not her then?" Bill asked slightly downhearted.

"No, Polly hasn't heard from her and she still isn't answering her phone."

Bill sighed and lowered his shoulders slightly.

"I guess I've got some stuff to talk to Carol about and apparently you have work to attend to."

"I'm gonna take a ride round town, I have a couple of hours before the shift and I really need to find Piper, we sort of fell out, it's hard to explain but I want to have her home safe. I'm gonna look for her, I'll let you know if I find her. Shall I tell her you're back or not?" Alex made a move to walk away but Bill stopped her.

"Alex, wait. I'll drive you. You never really introduced yourself properly and I'm curious as to why you are so interested in my daughter."

Alex wasn't sure if she was ready to explain the whole situation to Bill but she supposed she should make some sort of effort to befriend Piper's dad if she was ever going to become Piper's girlfriend. Well, that was if Bill was even going to stick around.

"Thanks, I'll have to be back by five to pick up my bike and head home to get changed before I have to get to work though."

Bill closed the door behind him not bothering to lock it. Alex looked a little puzzled which was obviously noticed by Bill as he proceeded to explain himself.

"The boys might not have their keys on them, plus she took my keys when she made me leave." Bill came around to the driver's side only unlocking the car once he had the handle in his reach.

The car had that new car smell and from the look of the air freshener hung from the rear-view mirror holding advertisements it had come from a rental place. Alex slipped into the passenger seat and stared aimlessly out of the window as Bill kicked the car into life. She was pulled out of her reverie when the car started moving again.

"Wait, you said she made you leave. Why? And how?" She squinted her eyes and furrowed her brow turning to look at Bill as he drove.

His face seemed to drop a little and looked more tired than Alex had noticed. "She made me leave, she found out about all of the things I had been doing and that wouldn't have bothered me but she threatened the kids. Piper namely. I couldn't see her go through anything else. I had to go, we had an agreement that I could come back in a month to collect my stuff and we could talk about the kids and the arrangements then."

As they began driving around town Alex grew distant. It took a while before either of them spoke again but the silence wasn't an awkward one, it was filled with determination and tension. Alex stared hard out of the window lifting her head slightly at every blonde they passed. She knew exactly what Piper was wearing that day but every time she saw a blonde she couldn't help but think that Piper might just have changed her outfit. Alex was the first to break the silence.

"What was with all the car drama if you could come back in a month's time. Why did you land your car in the lake?"

"I didn't. My car was stolen from outside the motel. Probably some joy-rider kids."

Alex presented Bill with an acknowledging nod and went back to staring out of the window.

"Care to share why you care for my daughter so much?"

Alex turned back to Bill and raised an eyebrow. "It's a long story."

"I've got time."

The raven-haired girl sighed and twisted in her seat slightly.

"If I told you, you would either push me out of the car, tell me I'm mad or not believe me at all."

Bill shifted gear and turned to look at Alex.

"I'm guessing I either know exactly what you are going to say or I'm going to be wildly wrong."

"Take a wild guess." Alex didn't expect him to guess anywhere near the right answer let alone the exact correct answer.

"You are more than just a friend aren't you. More than friends but less than anything else. You are in love with her aren't you?"

Bill and Alex made eye contact for the first time since the beginning of the car ride. The raven-haired girl was relieved to see something other than anger in his eyes. He looked compassionate, as if he really cared.

Alex wasn't sure whether to flatly deny it or to admit to this man that she was in fact in love with his daughter. He looked soft and caring and Alex quickly remembered the reason that Piper was in this situation in the first place.

"How did you know?"

"I could just tell. The way you say her name or the way you were so worried about her. You had to be more than just a friend because Polly isn't sat beside me in this car right now is she? It's also the way your eyes light up when you hear her name or the way your head lifted at every blonde we passed hoping that it could be her."

Alex smiled a weak smile but she just couldn't quite let herself be happy. Not when she had wronged Piper.

"But I messed all of that up."

"How so?"

Alex glanced at the phone in her hand hoping to see that time had flown so that they had to return home and avoid this conversation but no such luck.

"I messed it all up. I…" She could feel the tears starting to build in her eyes but she swallowed them back down. She was strong and she refused to cry in front of a man she barely knew. She felt the familiar heart wrench as she remembered Piper walking away and how she didn't have the balls to follow her. "I said something she didn't like and instead of just talking to her I freaked out and she walked away and I didn't follow her." Her voice lowered from a panicked blur to a hushed whisper "I should have followed her."

Bill looked over at Alex who was biting her lip tightly staring directly ahead and twiddling her thumbs in her lap.

"Look Alex, you can't blame yourself for this. If you love the girl then you know how crazy she can be sometimes. She blows up over the smallest things." Bill paused and laughed a little before continuing. "I remember earlier on in the year she threw a temper tantrum and walked out of the house because she couldn't fit in her bikini any more. Well that's what she said but really it fit fine."

Alex giggled a little, she could totally see Piper doing something like that. It was so her.

"I guess so. I just said somethings that I shouldn't have said and she didn't take too kindly to them. I don't blame her though, I would have been pissed just the same." Alex mumbled the last bit of her sentence and Bill decided it best not to ask what she said to Piper.

"So, does Piper like you back or?"

This was the one question Alex had tactfully been trying to avoid the entire time.

"Well that's where I'm stuck. One minute she was all over me and so I broke up with my girlfriend and she backed off like she didn't want me anymore."

"That sounds like Piper alright. Can never make her mind up that girl."

Alex widened her eyes in agreement and wordlessly went back to staring out of the window, hoping to see a glimpse of Piper but no such luck. A determined silence enveloped the pair once again and for the next twenty minutes they stayed that way, silent until Alex mentioned the time.

They briefly spoke of Piper on the way back to the house but nothing of too much importance was said, they spoke of places that she might have gone and Bill came up with the idea that she might have gone to granny Chapman's as she loved it there.

"It's about an hour out but she knows which buses to take to get there. She always used to hide out there when she was a kid."

Alex nodded and tried to recall a time when Piper might have spoken about granny Chapman but she just couldn't.

As the pair stepped out of the car Bill handed Alex a business card over with his number on it.

"Call me if you hear anything from her, I'll go check granny Chapmans. How can I get hold of you if I find her?"

"Oh." Alex pulled her phone out of her pocket and quickly typed in Bill's number sending him a quick text that simply read 'Hi. It's Alex.' "There you go."

Alex pulled her leathers on and was about to pull her helmet on before Bill spoke again.

"You need to tell her Alex. Tell her you love her or you'll lose her. I made the same mistake and I'll be damned if I see my daughter heart broken."

Alex let out a huffed, awkward laugh and pulled her helmet on before wheel spinning off: her signature move.

Bill sighed as he headed to the door, he could see Carol standing looking out of the window. 'That girl is a heartbreaker.' He thought to himself.

If you would ask Piper, he wouldn't be far wrong.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Heading into town was the only thing she could think to do. She couldn't ring anyone to let them know she was safe but even if she had the option, she didn't think she would. As far as Piper was aware, no one cared. Carol didn't care where she was over the past few days and so he probably won't care now. She probably wasn't even sober enough to remember her own daughter's name let alone remember to call her. Her dad disappeared on her barely saying goodbye with a promise of returning that was never fulfilled. Polly was always way too absorbed in her relationship, figuring out ways to manipulate and guilt trip poor Pete into things that he didn't really want to do, and then Alex came along. She thought out of all of the people she knew, Alex cared. She trusted her and she betrayed that trust. Piper let her walls down and that was hard for her and then Alex just walked in and bombed the place with her words.

The blonde let the tears roll down her cheeks, swiping them away with the back of her hand hoping that every girl she passed would stop giving her such a sympathetic look. Would they be so sympathetic if they knew why she was crying?

She couldn't help but let the tears fall and after a few minutes she stopped swiping them away, instead allowing them to blur her vision as she stared aimlessly into shop window after shop window as she trudged through the town. Cold and wet she shivered a little eventually slowing down when she smelled the familiar scent of coffee. She lifted her gaze to the Neptune's diner sign and thought for a moment. She thought about just walking away, she knew home was close but she really wanted a coffee now she had smelt it. The coffee at home never tasted the same anyway, but then again, where was home? She knew (or rather she thought) Alex would be at home with her mom, the apartment where Piper had spent the last few days feeling comfortable, safe, warm and happy. Alex wasn't on shift today (or so Alex said she wasn't). The blonde pushed through the double doors striding confidently over to the bar pretending that she wasn't soaked through to the skin.

That's when she saw her. "Fuck."

-0-0-0-0-0-

Alex wasn't even paying attention to the roads anymore. She was too busy looking for Piper. Through her tinted visor the streets looked dull and she couldn't help but find the ironic link between that and the fact that she was looking for her blonde ray of sunshine.

Alex made a detour via home to change, simply diving in and out of the apartment not staying long enough to talk to Elizabeth or Diane. The oldest Vause threw Alex a sympathetic look, the exact same look that Piper was getting as she walked through the streets crying. Alex knew what her mom meant so she pursed her lips and shook her head from side to side signalling no. Diane just nodded gently and Alex left through the door again.

She pulled up outside and stopped to wonder for a moment how she even managed to make it there alive. Taking a deep breath she took off her helmet and noted the fairly empty diner. Lacking in both staff and customers. She didn't like the idea of that. George would be in and that meant either having to tactfully avoid him or just put up with his pervy ass pinching all night. Neither sounded particularly appealing to her.

She slumped into work and straight into the back room to step out of her leathers, shuddering at the sound of her boss's voice as he laughed along with one of her workmates who she hadn't noticed when she first arrived.

Rolling her eyes she tied her apron and moved towards the counter ready to serve whatever daft fool came in next. Now the rain was almost torrential, hitting the glass panes so hard she thought they might cave in. Whoever was out in this was surely daft, she thought to herself. That's when her thoughts drifted back to Piper. She knew Piper wasn't a fan of being stuck out in the pouring rain and that made her stop for a moment and think. Surely Piper was somewhere nice and dry now still worrying the pants off of everyone. She was pulled from her day dreaming when she heard her boss's awful laugh again.

"Looking good as always Alexandra." He leaned into her back and breathed into her ear. She bit her lips and flared her nostrils gripping onto the bar counter so she wouldn't find one of her fists flying up to his face. She despised it when he called her that. Not even her mother called her Alexandra. As far as she was concerned that wasn't her name. Alexandra sounded like some uptight prissy WASPy girl who had everything that money could buy her. That wasn't Alex.

He stepped away and let out a breath she wasn't aware she was holding, very relieved at the fact that he hadn't pinched her ass before he walked away. He disappeared into his office and Alex relaxed slightly leaning her elbows on the countertop and resting her head in her hands. One of her co-workers brushed past her a little too firmly and Alex turned around to tell her off but it was Linda, the one woman that Alex actually spoke to in the diner, she was like a second mom to Alex and she knew absolutely everything.

"Hey Alex, you were daydreaming. Didn't think you were in today, it isn't your shift is it?" The short woman tossed the damp cloth she was holding from one hand to the other.

"No, apparently I'm covering but I'm pretty sure George could have just gone a man down today. It's practically dead."

Linda raised her eyebrows and shrugged her shoulders simultaneously, something that always made Alex smile a little.

"You know what he's like. I'm pretty sure he has the hots for you too. I don't think anyone has given him the bad news yet."

Alex swallowed hard thinking of the time he threatened her mom and sister. "I guess not." She managed to say after a few seconds of collecting herself and willing herself not to throw up.

"Something on your mind kid? You look kind of out of it."

"Mhm."

Linda always knew when something was up with Alex, it was a sort of sixth sense she seemed to have. "Girl troubles?" She asked sympathetically.

"Is there any other kind of trouble with me Linda?"

Linda patted Alex's back gently and pointed over to the bar where a blonde girl was sitting. "So how about you go and bury your sorrows in that girl's lap. She seems like your type, and she's already wet. Ooh and she's looking this way."

Alex dragged her head to look where Linda was pointing and the blonde was in fact looking at her and was very much her type. It was Piper. The pair locked eyes.

"Shit." Alex cussed.

"Fuck." Piper almost yelled.

The blonde pushed herself away from the counter and stepped back. Alex was the last person she wanted to see right now.

"I'll just be going now." Piper pointed towards the door but for the life of her she couldn't move. It was as if she was waiting for Alex to say something or to stop her from walking away.

"No, Piper. No you won't. You are going to stay exactly where you are. Sit down if you feel like it. You won't be here for that long anyway, where on God's earth have you been?" Alex immediately pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialled Bill. "Do you have any idea how many people have been worried about you Piper. I've been worried sick." She held the phone up to her ear and listened intently as it rang.

"Who are you calling?" Piper asked, a little more sharply than was necessary.

Alex held her hand up to silence Piper.

"Yeah, she turned up at the diner. Come and get her. Yeah she's wet you might want to bring a towel." As quickly as she had picked it up, she put the phone down again.

Piper furrowed her brow. "Who was on the phone Alex?"

"Sit down, I'll bring you a hot drink over. Your dad is coming to pick you up." Alex turned her back on Piper to make a cup of coffee. She was fighting back tears which she refused to let fall. Right now she wanted to hug Piper and tell her how much she missed her but at exactly the same time she wanted to slap her and tell her what an idiot she had been.

"My dad?"

"Yeah. He'll probably explain when he takes you home."

"Home? Alex, I don't want to go home, my mom will be there."

"Probably should have thought of that before you disappeared off the face of the earth Piper. Plus she's probably still K.O'd on the sofa like she was earlier."

Piper was wordless. She had no clue what to say.

Alex slammed a mug of coffee down onto the bar in front of Piper.

The blonde huffed and snatched the coffee spilling some of it onto the countertop before walking over to one of the booths and throwing herself onto the seat throwing her bag down beside her. She let out a huff loud enough for Alex to hear at the bar and then turned her attention to the window. Alex rolled her eyes and mopped up the spilled coffee.

Apparently Linda had been privy to the whole conversation and was standing nearby.

"History with that one?"

"Like you wouldn't know." Alex quipped throwing the cloth down onto the side.

Piper spent ten minutes glancing between the storm outside through the window and watching the door tentatively waiting expectantly for her dad to walk through it.

Only ten minutes passed before Bill walked through the double doors. He walked straight over to talk to Alex.

"She's in the booth over there." Alex pointed over to Piper who was now watching the interaction with wide-eyed interest.

"Have you spoken to her yet, have you told her how you feel?"

Alex shook her head. "I don't have time to go into it right now, I'm on shift and if my boss catches me he'll ring my neck, or squeeze my ass and I'm not sure which is worse." Alex seemed so relaxed talking to Bill and she couldn't quite figure out why. It was as if they were an old married couple worrying about their teenage daughter. "Just take her home. I can't look at her at the minute, I don't whether to hug her or wring her neck."

Bill nodded his head knowing exactly what Alex was feeling. The pair looked over at the blonde who diverted her eyes into her empty coffee cup and now appeared to be dithering.

"Piper, let's go. I'll explain everything in the car."

Piper stood from her seat in the booth grabbing her bag in one hand and her cup in the other.

The blonde came to stand beside her father at the bar and she placed the mug down.

"We'll talk later Piper." Alex stated as she took the mug from the side and disappeared into the back kitchen.

Bill and Piper left the diner almost immediately after Alex disappeared. The journey home promised to be a long and arduous one.

Leaning against the kitchen doorway was Linda. She had been eavesdropping again quite clearly.

"So there's something between you and the blonde?"

"Not yet."

"But you want there to be?"

"I guess."

"She's a bit of a drama queen."

"Tell me about it."

"You care about her don't you?"

"Of course I do."

"You love her don't you?"

Alex sighed deeply before giving her answer. "Yeah. Yes I do." Tears were building in Alex's eyes and it was evident in her voice.

"The little blonde girl got you good Alex. Never seen you like this before."

Alex looked up at Linda teary eyed and full of emotion.

"So you do have a heart." Linda joked as she playfully pushed Alex's shoulder.

"Don't you dare tell anyone." Alex joked back. She wanted her shift to be over so that she could run to Piper and hold her in her arms but at the same time she was thankful for the wait. She needed the time to figure out what to say to the blonde.

Once her shift had finished she jumped straight onto her bike wheel spinning faster than she usually did out of the car park thankful that she had managed to avoid any more awkward encounters with her boss.

She weaved in and out of the traffic on her way across town barely missing some of the cars that clearly never payed attention to any of the 'look out for bikers' sign. She eventually arrived at Piper's house and saw that her bedroom light was on and her curtains were open. As she dismounted her bike and pulled her helmet off, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She unzipped her leathers and fumbled into the pocket of her shorts yanking her phone out. The raven-haired girl moved to place her phone in-between her lips before tying her leathers around the waist using the sleeves, this way she didn't have to fight to get the leathers off over her shoes.

It buzzed again in her mouth and she cringed at the feeling of the vibrations through her teeth. She checked the messages.

2 NEW MESSAGES FROM PIPER

~You said we were going to talk?

~When?

Alex chuckled to herself as she walked up and knocked on the door. Bill answered the door almost immediately.

"Hey Alex, come in, she's in her room, go straight up."

"Thanks." Alex stepped up a couple of steps before Bill stopped her again.

"Alex."

"Sorry, I'll take my shoes off." She stepped back down again.

"No, it's not that, it's just that she's a little temperamental right now. She's had a lot to take in. Just be careful with her please."

Alex nodded her head, pausing for a few moments to see whether Bill had anything else to say and when she realised he didn't, she continued upstairs. She approached Piper's room carefully and knocked on the door.

"I came to talk."

"Come in." Piper muttered, she sounded like a sulking child.

As Alex entered, the blonde was lying on her bed absentmindedly scrolling through her phone not paying attention.

"Please put the phone down Piper, we need to talk, it's important."

"What could be so important Alex when I'll apparently never mean a thing to you. That doesn't really scream importance to me!" Piper threw her phone down onto the bed next to her.

"Piper, please keep your voice down, you don't want to wake your brothers."

"Oh, so you care about them now do you?"

"Piper, would you quit this attitude, I want to talk to you in a civil manner. You need to know what I meant when I said what I said."

"I know exactly what you meant Alex. You meant what you said. This, whatever it was, between us means nothing to you. You don't care, just like everyone else in my life." Piper stood and stepped towards Alex standing mere inches from her.

Alex took a step back from Piper and shook her head. "Don't you dare say that Piper, I was there when nobody else was. I fucking care, I took care of you when you were hurt and slowly but surely I… I care Piper. I said what I said because I know how much of a crazy bitch Sylvia is and I didn't want her coming after you to hurt you, I was trying to protect you Piper because I fucking care." Alex clenched her fists and tears rolled down her cheeks.

Piper took a step back too. "Oh."

"Yeah Piper, fucking 'Oh'. I said what I said because I care. I broke up with my girlfriend because I care. I let my walls down to you because I care. I spent almost two hours driving round town today looking for you and panicking because I care Piper. So don't you ever fucking dare tell me I don't care."

"But you wouldn't show me that, you wouldn't kiss me."

"I wouldn't kiss you Piper because once again I fucking cared! I didn't want to start a relationship based on cheating, what kind of relationship would it be if you were worrying about me cheating on you? I didn't kiss you because I cared too much Piper. I may not be great at showing I care but you sure as hell aren't great at seeing when I do either."

Piper stumbled over her words. "I…I…"

"I didn't realise you cared? Is that what you were going to say? Well I fucking do. I care way more for you than I have ever cared for anyone in my life and that's really hard for me to admit Piper." Alex was blushing profusely and breathing deeply as she let out a huge mix of emotions.

"Then show me." Piper mumbled, almost incoherent to all ears apart from Alex's. She heard the words loud and clear.

The raven-haired girl took a step forward and lifted her right hand to meet Piper's cheek. Piper covered Alex's hand with her own and stepped forward. It was Alex who eventually closed the gap between the two of them. There was an undeniable spark as soft pink lips met soft pink lips in the most delicate kiss.

A/N: Hope you liked it guys. As always please leave a review


	30. Chapter 24

A/N: Super short update just for the moment, there will be more up ASAP but I owed you guys something, after laptop failure and uni exams/assignments and christmas, my presence has been none existent. The next chapter will be the date! Oh, and you can all thank my dog for this chapter, he didn't write it but it's a long story haha. Thank you to M for being my No.1 always and thank you to everyone else who stayed this long. Thanks all.

Alex didn't deepen the kiss for fear of taking it too far. That and the fact that she wanted Piper to show her just how badly she wanted this. Piper dropped her hand from Alex's, pulled away and took a step back. Alex widened her eyes.

"I'm sorry Piper, I shouldn't have..." She was beginning one of her daft ramblings that happened when she was nervous. Piper had been privy to more than one and so she knew that the next thing she would do was throw her hand to the back of her neck and rub the skin there. She did. She was usually relaxed and suave about things like this but with Piper it was different, very different, because she cared, a lot.

"Alex..." Piper tried to interject but it just wasn't happening, Alex was too far gone.

"But I thought you wanted it, but obviously not and I'm sorry Piper..."

The blonde laughed slightly and stepped forward taking Alex's lips in her own. She felt the raven-haired girl immediately relax into her touch and drop her hand from the back of her neck.

Piper placed her hands either side of Alex's face and deepened the kiss. Alex stepped forward and wrapped her arms around the blonde's waist. She had the proof now that Piper wanted this and so she took a chance and slid her tongue along Piper's bottom lip begging for entrance.

The blonde smiled, let out a little huff of laughter and then granted it allowing Alex to take the kiss deeper and God did it feel good to feel wanted for the first time in a long time.

As Alex pushed the kiss deeper Piper held tight to her and stepped backwards towards the bed so much so that the back of her knees hit the bed with an unexpected force sending Piper backwards onto the bed, Alex followed as she tripped but she caught herself managing not to collapse on top of Piper.

The blonde now had her hands thrown carelessly above her head. Her eyes were lightly puffed from what Alex assumed was the crying she had been doing earlier on in the night, her blonde hair was messily thrown about her face and on the sheets above her head, she had the biggest smile and slightly swollen lips. Alex couldn't recall a time she'd ever looked more beautiful to her. This woman before her, now biting her bottom lip in a way that made Alex's heart beat faster, was the one she fell in love with.

Alex supported herself with a hand and a knee pressed into the bed aside Piper as she gently brushed a piece of Piper's messy blonde hair from across her face. She leaned down to kiss her and oh so gently pressed her lips against Piper's. The blonde wasn't satisfied by the minimalist kiss and leaned up to try and deepen the kiss but Alex pulled away standing up.

"Alex... please."

"Please what Pipes?"

There was that nickname again, the one that Piper adored and never did it sound sweeter than when it was rolling off of Alex's talented tongue out of her slick lips.

"Please stay."

Alex unwrapped the sleeves of her leathers from her waist and began pulling them over her shoulders and back onto her arms.

"You know I can't."

"Because of my dad? He doesn't care."

"No Piper, not your dad."

"My mom then. Is this because of my mom?"

"No Piper, not your mom although frankly, I'm not her biggest fan. But then again, you aren't supposed to get on with your partner's mother are you?"

"I get on with yours."

"Good point but still no."

"Then what is it Alex? I want to know why you won't stay with me."

Piper was now propped up on her elbows looking up Alex as she slowly pulled the zipper up on her leathers.

"Is this something to do with me because if so then please say now." The blonde was getting more and more irritated by the moment. Just two minutes ago they were kissing like there's no tomorrow and now this.

"Yeah, it is something to do with you Piper."

Piper was just about to open her mouth to object to Alex, already formulating some sort of 'fuck you' speech as tears threatened their arrival.

"It's just that if I stayed here with you tonight Piper then, God help me, I probably wouldn't be able to keep my hands off of you and I don't want that, not because I don't want you but because I want you so fucking much right now, but because I want to show you, to prove to you that you are different. I want to woo you, to show you that I do have a heart that exists inside my tough looking leather exterior. So if you will then I'd like to invite you to a date with me tomorrow, 7PM, I'll pick you up."

Tears of a different kind were springing to Piper's eyes now as she was overwhelmed with emotion with Alex's date proposal. A leather-clad Alex held her hand out to assist Piper to her feet and pull her into yet another deep, passionate kiss. She pulled away slightly dizzy and smiling wider than she can ever remember smiling.

"I have to go now Pipes but I'll see you tomorrow at 7 okay? I'd say dress nicely but you always do."

Piper just bit her bottom lip again and smiled nodding her head at Alex. The pair still had their fingers interlinked as Alex walked away. The blonde gave one last squeeze before letting go and Alex couldn't remember a time when she felt more empty.

Hearing Piper's door shut prompted Bill to come and stand at the bottom of the stairs.

"She okay?"

"I think she'll be just fine." Alex couldn't help the smile that crept across her face.

It was obviously contagious as Bill smiled back.

"Whatever makes my daughter happy makes me happy. I won't be leaving again anytime soon. Carol's in a mess and the kids need me."

Alex dropped her smile to a more serious one as she stood before Bill.

"She should be okay from here on out but just to make sure, I'm gonna pick her up tomorrow at 7 and take her somewhere nice."

Bill smiled again.

"That'll surely put a smile on her face. Just have her back at midnight okay?"

The pair shared a knowing smile and Bill outstretched his hand. Alex shook it firmly and then took a step back as Bill opened the door for her. Alex left with a nod and she looked up to Piper's room as she mounted her bike. The blonde was stood in the window watching as the raven-haired girl put on her helmet. Alex lifted her hand to wave at Piper and then left with her signature wheel spin off of the drive.

It was only upon the drive home that Alex realised that happiness and freedom ran side by side, hand in hand and that they both went by the same name 'Piper'.

A/N: As always please leave a review. Thanks for reading. P.S Sorry it took so long and it's not much!


	31. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

The ride home seemed all too long and all too torturous for Alex. All she wanted to do was rush home and tell her mother about the day and all the emotions that came with it, everything from exhaustion to exhilaration and everything in between. She wanted to play the whole situation cool with her mom even though she was excited to tell her she didn't want her thinking she'd gone soft. Alex Vause had to keep her cool leather clad exterior hardened.

She put her key in the door and unlocked it slowly in case everyone else in the house was asleep, it was late after all.

"Hey baby." Diane announced as Alex pushed open the apartment door.

"Hey mom, wasn't sure you'd still be up."

"Couldn't sleep."

Alex threw her bag onto the sofa, keys onto the table and began peeling off her leathers.

"That kind of day baby?" Diane asked walking over to the kitchen. Alex hoped that her mom was headed over to grab two ice cold beers. She was right.

"Like you wouldn't imagine!"

"Hmm, there's that little thing in your voice."

"What thing?"

"I haven't heard it in a long while."

"What?"

"Ah yeah, that's what it's called. Happiness."

Diane passed Alex her ice cold beer and Alex fought back a smile instead turning it into a smug little smirk.

"You sorted it with Piper then?"

Alex ran her finger around the rim of her beer bottle and hitched a knee up to rest her chin on.

"Erm... yeah, I guess so."

She refused to give her mother the satisfaction of eye contact because she knew that her eyes would give her away, as if her voice already hadn't anyway.

"I guess so? You're more of a definite yes or no person Alex. So which is it?"

"It's a yes."

Even Alex caught the happiness in her voice that time and it took her by surprise too.

"Okay, so now you have to tell me all about it."

Alex peeled her eyes away from the TV for a few moments and finally looked her mother in her the eyes. She knew if she did it now it would save her telling half of the story. Mother's instinct and all that.

"You kissed her didn't you?"

Alex didn't offer words, just a wide grin and a definite nod.

"Wow, so you two... is that a thing now or?"

Alex let out a meagre laugh at her mother.

"I'm not sure mom, we haven't discussed that yet."

"And this is going to happen when?"

Diane was gesturing in circles with her beer bottle half full as if she was part Italian.

"Tomorrow at seven." Alex lifted the beer bottle to her lips and mumbled into the opening "When I take her to dinner."

"You're taking her to dinner? Alex Vause? The 'I don't do dates' Alex Vause? That Alex is taking a girl to dinner?"

Alex rolled her eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes Alex, it's most unbecoming of a beautiful young woman like you."

Alex tutted in response, she really didn't see herself as a lady, or as anything for that matter. She was Alex and that was all she needed to be.

They spoke for another hour or so about this that and the other. They somehow went from conversations about the best restaurants in town to the best places to take a walk to the monogamy of seahorses and somehow on to how a penguin otter hybrid would fare in relationships, there was no direct train of thoughts just sleepy nonsense. That's the way they liked it though. Alex came down from her odd adrenaline high and Diane was just sick of talking and so the two eventually parted with a sleepy 'goodnight' on their lips as they returned to their respective beds for the night.

Alex couldn't remember a day she'd ever gotten up that early as her eyes snapped open. For a while she couldn't really understand why her body and mind had decided to conspire to wake her this early but then as if it was a prayer, it was the first thing that rolled off of her tongue.

"Piper Chapman."

It was almost a whisper but it answered every one of her questions.

It was barely light out, Alex could tell this by the annoying gap in her curtains that she could never quite close completely. She grasped for her glasses and lazily slid them onto her face before grabbing her phone to check the time. 7:35AM. She hadn't seen that time in a long while but she was too awake to go back to sleep and she could hear Elizabeth laughing in the living room so she thought she might as well go and join the fun.

Wearing an oversized black mock football jersey and a pair of black loose fit shorts she walked into the living room silently demanding the attention of the room which was immediately granted.

"Hey Al, you're up early."

"I know, I'm surprised too." For once she didn't seem exasperated by her early morning but instead seemed refreshed. She reached into the fridge and pulled out a carton of orange juice taking big sips out of it not even giving a first thought to using a glass.

"Alex, again, ladies don't drink out of the carton."

She wiped her mouth the back of her hand and slid the carton back into the fridge.

"Maybe not, but Alex's do."

Diane shook her head in mock despair of her daughter. She could never even pretend to be ashamed of her daughter, her pride always showed through.

She was so proud of Alex for the woman she had become, for stepping up to sisterhood and for everything really. She went above and beyond the call of a teenager and for that Diane was eternally grateful.

"So you figured out your plans yet?"

"Figured I'd wing it."

"This, Alex is something you definitely should not wing."

"I'm just kidding mom, I'm planning on taking her to La Bella Vista across town, it's not far from where she lives."

"And what time are you picking her up?"

"Ooh, ooh, is "her" Piper?" Elizabeth interrupted making air quotes with her fingers around the word her.

Diane couldn't help but smirk as she looked at Alex.

An excited Elizabeth was eagerly awaiting her reply as she looked between the two older Vauses.

Alex smiled at Elizabeth and then grabbed an orange from the fruit bowl before walking towards the couch to sit by her mom.

"Yeah kid, "her" is Piper." Alex attempted the air quotes that Elizabeth previously used but almost dropped her orange in the process causing Elizabeth to laugh wildly. She slumped onto the couch next to her mom.

"So you and Piper are going on a date?" Liz asked, the excitement beyond containment, she was practically jumping up and down on the spot.

"Mhm."

Elizabeth turned her head to her mother. "Can Piper come and get ready with us like last time?"

Diane smiled and thought about it. She couldn't deny that that sounded like a brilliant idea.

"What time are you picking her up Al?"

"7."

"Mom!" Elizabeth was still waiting for her answer.

"It's not really up to me sweetie, I don't know if she'll be getting ready with someone else but it would be nice."

Diane turned her attention to Alex with a little look in her eye that Alex knew all too well. "You never let us help you so what else are we supposed to do. She came here last time."

Alex popped a segment of orange into her mouth and then sighed.

"I'll go grab my phone and I'll ask her but I can't guarantee the answers gonna be yes." Alex stood to go and fetch her phone from her bedroom.

"Alex..."

Alex swallowed. "I know, I know, ladies don't talk with their mouth full."

Diane smiled. "That's my girl."

Alex began the phone call in her room but as it rang she slowly made her way back to the couch. Piper picked up just as Alex slumped herself down onto the sofa so the first thing she heard was an exasperated release of breath.

"Wow, long day at the office huh?" Alex could practically hear Piper's smile as she spoke.

"Something like that. Hey, so about tonight..." Alex paused before she finished the sentence, unable to believe that she was even asking this.

"Yeah?" There was a little panic evident in Piper's voice but at the same time it sounded rehearsed as if she was used to being let down.

"Nothing bad Pipes, it's just mom and Liz were wondering if perhaps you wanted to come and get ready here with them because I won't let them help me. It's okay if you say no but they made me ask." Diane playfully slapped Alex's shoulder and Alex rolled her eyes as the segment of orange she was holding fell to the floor.

Piper was holding back a squeal as she gripped tightly onto her phone.

"Yes!... I mean yeah sure."

"They will be pleased to know." Alex smiled as she looked at Diane. Elizabeth fist pumped the air as she saw the smile plastered across her mothers' face.

"Anything for Diane and Liz."

"Great, I'll pick you up at 4."

"Great... Oh wait do I need to bring anything?"

"Just your beautiful face."

Diane pretended to throw up as she heard Alex's sweet comment.

Alex could practically hear Piper's blush from the other end of the phone.

"Oh but put on jeans, I'll pick you up on my bike but we'll go to dinner in mom's car so you can wear anything then."

Piper stepped it up a notch, suddenly feeling a little brave. "What if I wear nothing?"

The blonde's response took Alex by surprise but she still didn't miss a beat. "Then it won't take you long to get ready will it?"

There was a slight silence at the other end of the phone. She wasn't expecting Alex to respond like that but she really didn't know what she was expecting. "Hmm... I guess not. See you at four then?"

Alex smiled and dropped her head slightly. "Mhm. See you at four."

There was a quiet "Bye." Hushed down the phone by Piper.

Diane could see it, Elizabeth could see it, hell, even Alex could see it, she was falling head over heels for this girl and there was absolutely nothing she could do about it.

It was only almost 8 and Alex couldn't help but feel excited. She needed to go out and sort some things out like booking a table and buying flowers, she was gonna outdo Lucy, no matter what it took. She was determined.

"I'm gonna go get dressed and run some errands, can I borrow the car mom?" Alex asked as she stood up and headed back to her room.

"Sure sweetie, keys are on the side." Diane replied still slightly in awe at the fact her eldest daughter was willingly going on a date that she was going to plan.

"Can I come Ally?" Elizabeth called after her, it was rare that Alex said yes but given that she was in a good mood she guessed it was worth a try.

"Sure kid, just don't ever call me Ally again okay?" Elizabeth's face lit up and she rushed off to get dressed.

Diane was even more in awe now. Who was this woman and what had she done with her unladylike daughter who despised dates and taking small children shopping?

"You sure Al?" Diane asked, eyebrows raised in question.

"Mhm, we'll be just fine."

Diane didn't doubt it. Before she knew it Alex and Elizabeth was standing by the door ready to go in their adorable near-matching outfits.

"We'll be back soon mom!" Elizabeth announced as they turned to leave.

"Ah, not without a kiss."

Alex slumped her shoulders but couldn't help but smile. She was lucky to have such an amazing accepting mother who cared about her as much as she did. Her mind briefly fleeted to Piper who's mother was less than caring it would appear.

Both girls accepted their usual kiss on the forehead and headed out of the door. As Alex pulled the door closed behind her, she whispered, just about audible to Diane, "I love you mom". Nothing had ever meant so much to her than that exact moment. Diane made a mental note to thank Piper later.

The journey down the stairs went as it always did, Elizabeth skipping down the stairs a little too quickly for Alex's liking and Alex shouting warnings and precautions at her. The raven-haired girl never knew how tense she was until she breathed the final sigh of relief after stepping off of the final step.

They skip-raced to the car, Alex of course emerging victorious due to longer legs.

"So where are we going Al?" Elizabeth asked curiously as she clicked the seatbelt into the holder on the passengers side seat.

"We're going to impress Piper." Alex said simply as she started the car.

"Like Lucy did?"

"No, kid. We're going to impress her so much more than that..."

A/N: I'm so sorry for the huge wait. I know it's a very short chapter but the next one will be up super soon I promise. The date will be in the next chapter, I just thought I owed you all a little something for being so patient whilst I've been so busy. Look out for the next chapter as it will be up as soon as I can and the next chapter of Vauseman A-Z will be up soon too. Again, sorry for your wait, you will all be very much rewarded very soon ;).


	32. Chapter 26

SO GUESS WHO'S BACK! KIND OF!

Firstly, you! Yes you! If you haven't finished your schoolwork yet, then close this tab! Seriously! Don't make me mad!

So this isn't quite the date chapter you were all looking for and is instead the run up to the date chapter you were looking for.

Happy reading anyways, it probably wasn't worth waiting for but hey it's here and I'll try my damn best to continue with it!

So without further ado…

CHAPTER 26

…

"More than Lucy impressed her? How are we gonna do that?"

"You'll have to wait and see."

Alex tapped the tip of her nose with her finger and Elizabeth giggled, shifting in her seat as she always did.

As they pulled onto the parking lot of the mall, Elizabeth had thought up another barrage of questions.

"Are we gonna get her flowers?"

"Can we get her chocolates?"

"Can we buy her candles, girls like candles!"

"What would you know about what girls like Liz?" Alex was slightly taken aback by Elizabeth's candle idea; she was a little too young for romance.

"I'm a girl silly, I like candles."

Alex couldn't help but grin at Elizabeth's comment.

"Sure kid, we can buy her candles."

"Ooh ooh, can we build her a bear?"

An idea sparked in Alex's head at the idea of a build-a-bear.

"Sure kid, we can build her a bear."

Elizabeth fist pumped the air and Alex held her hand out for Elizabeth to grab as they manoeuvred around cars.

"So, what first Liz? Flowers, Candles, Chocolates or a bear?"

"Candles!"

"Candles it is then."

The pair headed to the new fancy candle shop that naturally, Alex would have walked a hundred metres to avoid. This however, was for a special occasion.

"Try and find one that Piper might like kid, maybe one that smells like something she likes."

"She likes you, so why not find one that smells like you!"

Alex took a moment to think about the childlike wisdom Elizabeth had just spat out.

"That's not a terrible idea really kid."

After nosing around the shop for what felt like an eternity to Alex, there was still no luck . Elizabeth had found a pretty candle holder that seemed to scream Piper but no candles that smelled like Alex. That was until Elizabeth's childlike wisdom shone through again.

"Hey Alex, this one smells like the candle you have in your room."

The one candle that Alex kept in her room was one that her mom had gotten for her a couple of years ago, she had hardly lit it and saved it for only the most special of occasions. Given that she barely opened her curtains either, she'd almost entirely forgotten about it.

"That's the one kid, let's just get that."

"But you can't impress her with just one candle."

"We'll impress her in other ways kid, the candle can just be a simple gift. Let's think of it that way. Anyway, candles aren't really my forte."

"Your fort?"

"Forte, and it's an expression kid, don't worry about it."

After they'd paid, Alex had nearly had a heart attack at the price and they left.

"Where to now kid? You seem to know how to make a lady smile."

"To the chocolate place."

Elizabeth skipped off and Alex found her exactly where she knew she would be, a few doors down at the chocolate place, aptly named 'The Chocolate Place', with her nose pressed up against the window practically salivating at the hefty display.

The young girl jabbed her finger against the window.

"Look at this Al, you have to bake her a cake!"

"How about _we_ bake her a cake?"

Elizabeth's face lit up.

"With chocolate frosting and sprinkles too?"

"Yeah kid, if that's what Piper will like."

"She'll love it! Chocolate is her favourite frosting flavour!"

"How did I not know that and yet you did? Sounds like you should be going on a date with her instead of me! Next you'll be telling me what her favourite flowers are and what perfume she wears." As soon as Alex had said it she knew what Elizabeth's answer would be.

"I..."

"You know, don't you kid?"

Elizabeth pressed her lips together in a fruitless attempt to silence herself and nodded hastily.

"Go on, tell me."

"Her favourite flowers are roses and lilies and carnations and der-jer-ger-ber-bras?"

"You mean gerberas?"

"Yeah those! And her favourite perfume is Michael Kors Glam Jasmine."

Alex just rolled her eyes. Of course the one and only Piper Chapman would have incredibly expensive taste.

"Well we definitely aren't buying her perfume then!"

They dipped into the shop and Elizabeth's eyes were darting everywhere. Alex herself was like a kid in a candy shop. She didn't know what Piper's favourite flavours were or whether or not she was allergic to peanuts. She actually at this precise moment didn't know much and that was kind of becoming an issue.

"Let's just get this box Alex, it has her favourites in. Look, white chocolate!"

Alex was suddenly becoming very thankful for her little wing lady; she was turning out to be very useful.

"That'll do kid, let's get out of here before I end up with diabetes or something."

Alex hurried to the desk to pay and thanked her lucky stars that she had managed to pull a little extra money in this month. This was going to be much more expensive than she originally planned.

Next stop was the bear shop, Elizabeth's little bout of excitement earlier on sparked a wonderful idea in Alex's head. If the date went well then maybe, just maybe, she'd ask Piper to be her girlfriend and what better way than with a stuffed animal, probably of Elizabeth's choice.

"Piper's favourite animal is a penguin you know Al? She's always the penguin keeper when we play zoos."

"Is that so? Then go pick out the finest penguin for her!" Alex lifted her hand and pointed towards penguins as she gave her best announcement voice.

Elizabeth giggled and skipped over to pick out the finest penguin. Only the best for Piper.

Bright blue eyes and a cute orange beak, definitely the best penguin. They walked over to the stuffing machine where the assistant was waiting.

"Can I do it Al? Please?"

Alex placed a reassuring hand on Elizabeth's shoulder to both calm her and keep her from bouncing too high.

"Sure kid. Go for it."

"Are we putting a voice in it?" The stuffing assistant asked far too cheerily for Alex's liking.

"You should Al! You should!"

"And what will I say kid?"

Elizabeth moved her hand in a gesture to bring Alex lower before leaning in and whispering a few words into her ear.

"You got it kid, I'm lucky to have bought you along with me! How would I ever have done this without you?" Alex's face bore a genuine smile.

"Yeah we'll put a voice in it." The woman handed over a little white box and gave the instructions before directing Alex towards a quiet room where she could record her message.

Alex returned shortly and handed the little circular white box to the stuffing assistant who rather forcefully shoved it into the penguin's stomach.

She then had Elizabeth stuff the gooey-eyed, now chubby, penguin before demanding that Alex pick a heart and make a wish.

After spending ten minutes trying to explain to Elizabeth that the penguin didn't need clothes, they compromised on a scarf and left the shop.

A couple more errands were run before the pair finally headed back to the apartment.

Arms full of shopping, the two girls pushed through the apartment door.

"We're home mom!" Elizabeth announced.

"I can tell by the noise you're making!" Diane joked as Alex dropped the keys onto the work surface of the breakfast bar.

"We're gonna bake Piper a cake!" Liz's eyes lit up as she looked up at her mom.

"Well you'd better do it quickly, she'll be here in a couple of hours!" Diane crossed her arms and directed her eyes to the clock on the wall.

Alex cursed under her breath before staring wide-eyed at her mother.

"Flowers! How did I forget flowers?"

"I tell you what, how about me and Liz make the cake whilst you do what you need to do Al. How does that sound?" Diane knew that even at the best of times Alex was no good at baking and she wanted to impress Piper not disappoint her.

"That sounds amazing mom thanks." Alex dashed towards her mother scooping up the keys from the worktop as she did so. She leaned in to give her mother a kiss on the cheek before heading towards the door. "Everything you need should be in the bags, if you need anything call me. And make it chocolatey! Piper loves chocolate apparently."

Diane let out a giggle as she looked at Elizabeth, she knew that Liz had been Alex's saviour and she was so pleased that since Piper came along the two had been getting along much better.

Just as Alex got back from the nearest shop with flowers and gift wrap for the gifts the mother-daughter baking duo were just pulling the cake from the oven.

"Oooh that smells amazing!" Alex cooed over the cake on the cooling rack. She reached out to pick a piece off only for her hand to be batted away by a much smaller one.

"No touching Alex! It's for Piper!"

Alex held her hands above her head in surrender as she walked away. "I'm sorry, I've been told. I'll go and wrap these gifts out of the way of temptation!"

Diane knew Alex was no good at wrapping gifts either but she couldn't do everything and at least Piper was one to appreciate the effort.

Just as Diane and Liz had finished the cake and hid it away, Piper knocked at the door.

"I'll get it!" Liz yelled as she jumped down from the breakfast bar stools.

If Alex hadn't heard the knock on the door, then she sure as hell heard Elizabeth's excited yell. She appeared in the living room just as Piper stepped through the door.

The blonde was wearing light blue ripped jeans, one of Alex's band tees, a leather jacket, and had a plain black backpack thrown over her shoulder.

She didn't look date ready but that's what Diane was there for.

"Hey there beautiful, ready for our date?" Alex asked as she set the cushions the right way on the sofa.

"Of course! Didn't you know that cool and casual is in these days?" She gave Alex a mock twirl and flashed a smile that made Alex's heart jump.

"Is that so? Then I think I'm dressed and ready to go!" Alex was wearing an oversized jersey with three quarter length track pants rolled up to the knee with odd trainer socks.

"I think that's a little too casual Al." Piper flashed that smile again.

"You're right, maybe I should put on shoes."

"Well that's a start at least."

Diane watched the interaction between the two girls intently and smiled to herself, even if no one else could see it, she could see that this was the start of something great. This was what both girls deserved, happiness.

"So Piper, shall we go and get you ready for your date?" Diane interjected during a short pause.

"I guess so!"

Elizabeth ran up to Piper and excitedly began tugging on her hand. "Come on Piper! Let's go make you look like a princess!"

"I think she already looks like a princess." Alex was clearly trying to score brownie points with the blonde.

"Well princess-ier then!"

The group collectively laughed as Elizabeth dragged Piper towards her mother's bedroom.

Diane smiled and threw a barely noticeable wink towards Alex who lingered in the living room.

"Which dress this time mom? What about green? Alex likes green."

"I believe the green dress was flatly denied last time and so I don't think anything will have changed Liz."

"Yeah it's a no to the green one Liz, any others?"

"You wore the red one last time so maybe the black one. It's pretty. I like it."

"Sounds good Liz, I like the black one. Plus, I packed black flats and they'll go great with the black dress."

The dress was cut just above the knee. It synched in at the waist and featured a tie to create a bow at the back.

Diane stood with her arms crossed just watching the interaction between the pair admiring, and despairing, at just how quickly the young girl was growing up right in front of her.

They may be very different people but the older Elizabeth got, the more she got to be like her big sister.

They both looked to Diane for approval.

Without the girls saying anything, Diane spoke.

"Looks like you don't need me here. It looks great girls. Now what about jewels?"

"Ooh the pearls!" Elizabeth looked at her mother with her big gooey eyes and smiled.

"Sure." There was no reluctance in Diane's voice. Just dead certainty and a hint of a smile.

She passed Piper the pearls from the jewellery box and smiled.

"Look after them for me. Alex got them for me. Of course they're not real but they mean the world to me."

Piper grinned from ear to ear as she looked down at the pearls in her hand.

"I'll look after them I promise."

Elizabeth and Diane then left the room to allow Piper space to change. As they stepped out of the room, Alex stepped out of her room with badly wrapped gifts in her arms. The blue metallic wrapping paper showed up every unruly crease and misplaced piece of tape.

"They look great sweety!" Diane encouraged.

"Don't lie to me mom." Alex laughed as she dropped the gifts onto the breakfast bar before revealing her outfit. A tight white V-neck t-shirt hugged all of her impressive curves and her high-waisted jeans with the ripped knees showcased her bad ass attitude. Paired with a black leather jacket, black doc martens, killer red lipstick and black geek glasses, her suave sexy look was almost complete. Her long black hair tousled into gentle curls perfected the look.

Diane looked her daughter up and down. "At least you'll match!" She giggled.

"Did she steal my outfit idea again?" A hint of sarcasm in her voice spelled Vause and Diane couldn't remember a time in her life when she could remember Alex looking happier than she did now.

Diane smiled to herself as she pulled the cake from its hiding place and sliding it onto the counter.

"How about we save that for later mom? If I'm gonna take her out to dinner, then there's no point filling her up with dessert.

Slightly dejected, Diane slid the cake back off of the side and back into its hiding place. She was a little bummed that she probably won't be around to see the look on Piper's face when she saw the cake but it was also a good idea as surely Diane's smile would be a dead giveaway that it wasn't actually Alex that baked the cake. Although the cake itself might give that away.

"You'd better save me a piece then!"

"Me too!" Elizabeth chimed in.

"Me three!" Piper exclaimed as she exited the room. "Wait, what did I just sign myself up for?"

All three heads turned to meet the gaze of Piper who looked absolutely stunning. The black knee length dress perfectly complimented her long tanned runner's legs. And the pearls around her neck accentuated her cleavage.

"Wow." Alex stared in disbelief, not only at the fact that Piper looked amazing but that she was also wearing her mother's beloved pearls.

"Thanks, I think." Piper giggled. "Ooh did I miss someone's birthday?"

"No they're for you. I got you some things just to say thank you for everything." Alex shyly diverted her eyes to the floor where she noticed Piper's red painted toes on her bare feet and as she glanced back up to her face she noticed her matching red painted fingernails.

Piper furrowed her brow.

"You're silly, why would you do that?"

"Because you deserve it that's why. Here, come and sit on the sofa and we'll open them."

Elizabeth rushed over to the guinea pig cage to pretend to fawn over them whilst she secretly watched Piper, Diane however was less discreet with her notions and went and sat in the armchair next to the sofa.

Alex handed Piper two gifts to unwrap. The first was a box of chocolates which Piper smiled widely at.

"You shouldn't have, silly! These are expensive! And my favourite but also expensive! How did you know?"

"I had a little help." Alex winked in Elizabeth's direction.

Piper smiled at the both of them and proceeded to unwrap her next gift. It was the candle.

"Ooh candle!" She lifted the lid and inhaled deeply. "It smells like your room Al, thanks." She placed the candle down on the coffee table and leapt forward to hug Alex.

Alex let out a little laugh and hugged the blonde back.

Piper drew back and Alex stood.

"Would you like to go on a date with me miss?" Alex held her hand out to Piper and the blonde took it standing immediately.

"Let's go!" Piper laughed as she pulled on her shoes and threw on one of Alex's leather Jackets.

Diane stood at the door to give both girls a kiss. As Diane kissed Piper Alex bent down and whispered a quiet thank you to Elizabeth. As Diane hugged Alex, she whispered 'behave' into her ear before kissing her on the forehead.

The pair left the apartment and headed down the stairs.

"So where are we going?"

"I was thinking of that new place in town that opened, seems pretty upmarket, good reviews."

"Also expensive so we aren't going there. Where were you really thinking?"

"Well there's a diner a few blocks away, I guess we could give that a go!"

"Let me phrase that better, if you were in my position right now what would you want?"

"Mexican and a movie?"

"Hmmm... throw in bowling and you've got a date!"

"You really wanna go bowling in a dress? And hey! I thought this already was a date!" Alex chuckled as she began to race Piper to the car.

P.S. I'm kind of back, I tried. Hope it's okay for you all. Thanks for reading. Have a good day! Leave a review :)


	33. Chapter 27 ish

Hey guys, sorry for taking forever with this, and I know you're going to hate me for it but I promise you I'm working on the actual full chapter and I'm so excited to give it to you. But for now, here's a taste of what's to come. Thanks guys.

There was an odd type of silence as the pair sat in the car. Luckily it only lasted a few moments as Alex brought the car to life.

"So… you come here often pretty lady?" Alex swung her head around and cheesily shifted her eyebrows up and down.

Piper couldn't help but laugh.

"First time here actually, but if you're here then I'll certainly be coming back."

"Oh me, I'm always here! So, I guess I'll be seeing you around."

There was another slight silence as the two looked at each other. Piper caught the smile that was forming on her lips with her teeth, shaking her head as she looked away.

Alex looked to the steering wheel and then shifted the car into reverse.

This date was already promising to be the best one Piper had been on. The natural chemistry shared between them was incredible, natural and undeniable.

She didn't know it at the time but Alex was thinking the exact same thing. Natural conversation flowed between them as they spoke about everything from Animals to Politics and back again during the car ride to their cinema destination.

"So whaddya wanna watch?" Alex questioned as she looked over at Piper at the stop light.

"Something with perfect English please!"

Alex rolled her eyes.

"Fine. What would my fine lady like to view on this delightful eve' "

"My fine lady? Too much Al! Why don't we see when we get there!"

"Okay but snack pick up first though yeah?"

"Of course"

The pair pulled onto the car park of the mall and headed in to find candy to snack on during the film. They headed straight towards Alex's favourite candy shop and proceeded to make the biggest bag of Candy possible which came to an unmentionable price at the checkout. After a small argument at the till, Piper passed the cashier the money and they headed to the cinema.

"Decided on a film yet?" Alex asked as they stepped through the doors of the cinema.

"Can I at least look at the movies available first?" Piper raised an eyebrow at Alex.

The raven-haired girl smiled to herself at how sexy Piper looked when she did that. God knows that at this moment she could not have cared less about any of the other people in the cinema that perhaps thought the two were very over dressed for such a place as the movies.

"Sure!" Alex finally managed to say.

Piper was standing at one of the informational points looking at what time each movie began and what each of the movies was about. Alex came to stand behind her and gently placed her hands on the blonde's hips which made her jump slightly.

"Geez Al!" Piper placed a hand to her own chest.

"Sorry Kid!" Alex held her hands up above her head.

"I didn't say you could move your hands" The blonde joked as she continued to tap on the screen in front of her. "Hey what about this one? It looks funny and God knows I could do with a laugh."

"A kid's movie really?"

Piper looked at Alex with her pleading puppy dog eyes that Alex just melts at.

"Fine princess whatever you want." Alex could not say that without adding the sarcasm.

They got to the counter, booked the tickets to the movie they wanted to see and Alex stood back and watched the bill rise as Piper ordered popcorn and a large drink too despite the heavy bag of Candy they were smuggling in via Piper's (not quite big enough) handbag.

"I'm gonna get a slush, do you want one?"

Pipes shook her head. "No thanks Al, I'll settle with my coke."

"You sure?"

"Sure."

They were running a few minutes late for the movie before toilet stops but they didn't care anyways since the adverts always seem to go on for 30 minutes before the film.

Sure enough, as they took their seats in the very empty movie screen, the adverts were still playing.

The pair found the perfect places to put their snacks within grabbing distance for both, the candy located tucked in between Piper's legs so there weren't any spillages and the popcorn in between Alex's which was no easy feat seeing as the pair were wearing dresses.

Plenty of laughter was shared between the two as they watched the animated tale of a dog and his animal friends. Given that it was a children's film there was plenty of adult references which earned gentle elbow jabs in the ribs to and from them both.

Just as Alex guessed, Piper made advances on her slushy and 30 minutes into the film the blonde had drunk 50% of it.

Alex smirked and rolled her eyes in typical Vause style as Piper slurped another 10%. Upon finding she was just sucking ice through the straw, she retired it to the cup holder between them.

"Thanks Pipes"


	34. Chapter 28

A/N: so the date chapter is finally here! So sorry to torture you all but I wanted to post this chapter on this very special day! The 21st of July! A certain someone has been complaining that they haven't ever been featured in my author's notes despite their prominence in my life, so here's to Vausemania, my pain in the butt and my soulmate. This chapter was inspired by a date we had when she came to visit me here in the UK! It was an extremely eventful day that for the most part (not all) we both enjoyed. Happy 7 months sweety. I love you and I can't wait to be with you again in less than a month. Also, it's my 21st birthday tomorrow and I remember celebrating my 19th with you guys! I'm so so thankful to whoever is still hanging on in there! I promise I'll continue this to the best of my ability. Oh and whoever promised If I came to the states they'd buy me Mexican food, hit me up, I'll be there in August! Happy reading guys, hope this was worth it for you all!

New Chapter.

Chapter 28

Many more laughs were shared as the pair finished watching the movie. They nudged each other at the adult innuendos, laughed in unison at the hilarious kids jokes and at some point, during the movie, their fingers found their way to being interlocked.

As the movie came to an end, the credits began to roll and the lights slowly brought the room to life. The pair gathered their things and stood. As Alex turned to ask Piper if she had everything, Piper surprised her with a kiss. It was powerful and meaningful and Alex felt the spark flow through her. The kiss broke and Alex took a sharp breath in.

"You got everything kid?"

Piper shifted the skirt of her dress and looked around.

"Yeah I think so."

As Piper turned it gave Alex just enough time to let out the deep breath she took in without it being weirdly noticeable.

"Then let's go eat." The pair stepped out of the movies and into the plaza to peruse the restaurants. Somewhere between the theatre and the plaza the pair interlocked fingers again. The blonde started a gentle sway with their hands as they spoke absent-minded. Alex softly ran her thumb over Piper's reassuring her to keep swinging.

"Looks like it's chicken, burgers or Mexican kid, what're you feeling kid?"

"Cold. I'm feeling cold."

Alex couldn't deny that the temperature had dropped a couple of degrees since they entered the movie theatre but she also couldn't help but wonder if Piper's words were an attempt to get her out of her beloved leather jacket which right now she was rocking over her dress.

"Cold? Let's get you inside kid." The pair headed inside the nearby mall and found a quiet window to sit in for a moment.

"You can really see the whole city from here Al. How come we've never found this place before?" Piper forgot momentarily that she was cold as she pressed her fingertips to the glass.

"I don't know Pipes, it's certainly the best view I've seen in a long time." Alex dropped her backpack to the floor and pulled her jacket off in a not-so-sexy fashion, somewhat glad the blonde couldn't see her.

Piper had the cheesiest grin on her face as she turned. "Really Al?"

"Here. Thought you might be cold." The raven-haired girl held her jacket out to the blonde who slipped her arms into the sleeves marvelling at the warmth left behind. Piper crossed her arms and bunched the jacket up burying her face in it.

"It smells like you, Al." She turned back to face the view of the city.

"Well yeah it's hardly gonna smell like asbestos is it?"

"I'm not sure asbestos has a smell, Al"

"Hey, don't knock my knowledge!" Alex picked her backpack up off the floor and stepped towards Piper. She pulled the straps onto both shoulders and reached her hands out to wrap them around the blonde's waist. Piper jumped slightly at the touch but quickly sank into Alex's warmth when she recognised it.

"Doesn't the infamous Alex Vause like being challenged?"

"Infamous? Excuse me!"

Piper let out a laugh that Alex could never resist, not in a million lifetimes. The blonde cocked her head away from the view and towards the raven-haired girl that stood embracing her.

"You're excused." Piper placed a little kiss on Alex's lips before looking back out of the window.

The raven-haired girl smiled to herself. "So, what is it going to be Pipes?"

"What?" She was afraid she'd missed a question.

"Chicken, burgers or Mexican?"

"Ohhhh."

"Or are you too full from MY slushy and our snacks to eat right now?"

"Too full." Piper mumbled barely paying attention to what Alex was saying, instead losing herself in the feeling of Alex's arms wrapped around her.

"Mmmmmkay, what about bowling next then?" Alex pulled Piper closer into her resting her chin on the shorter girl's shoulder and nuzzling her face gently into her neck.

She felt the blonde nod and needed no other confirmation, she slipped her hand down her arm to grab her hand. "This way then."

Piper followed, somewhat reluctant to leave the view and the warmth of Alex's arms behind. Even though it was a bit of a walk downhill, the girls held hands and laughed all the way. At the bowling alley, they quickly acquired their shoes and lane, and grabbed a drink before beginning their game.

The pair teased each other about aiming skills and scores and everything they could think of throughout the two games of bowling.

Alex couldn't resist taking a few snaps of Piper as she bowled.

It was over before they knew it and even though they both won a game each, Piper insisted she won overall. Alex most definitely wasn't about to ruin her excitement.

They both had their second slushy of the day during the game and decided to try their luck on the arcade games after they'd finished. It was slow going at first as they figured out all the colourful machinery, what did what and how to win. Before long they were in their stride of winning tickets and almost an hour passed. Of course the pair stopped to take a selfie with their messy bunches of arcade tickets before feeding them haphazardly into the counting machine. Over a thousand tickets later and they settled on a travel board game for themselves and a keyring for Elizabeth. Realising that they could've spent less money to buy a full-size board game, they left hastily to take on the short trek uphill back to the cinema complex where they planned to eat.

The walk appeared significantly longer on the way back up but the pair didn't mind, it just gave them more time to talk. Even though they'd been "friends" for a while they'd never really stopped to ask what each other's favourite colour was or what their dream car would be, all the simple things.

Piper began complaining a little way up the hill but all Alex could do was look over and smile at the petite blonde in the oversized jacket she'd claimed for the walk. After a while of complaining and lagging behind Alex got a little bothered.

"At this rate you'll be eating greasy take away food from my shitty ass diner." She took a few steps back towards Piper as she'd now stopped altogether. "Oh would you look at that my shoelace!" Alex announced over dramatically. She bent down to "fix her shoelace" in front of the blonde and as she stood she put her shoulder to Pipers waist and her arm around the back of her leg throwing her over her shoulder in a fireman's lift.

"Put me down Al" Piper screamed as she mockingly pounded at Alex's back.

"Thought your legs were getting tired kid!"

"Put me down, I'll walk."

"Gotta use the magic words Pipes."

The blonde, distracted by the nickname that she loved so much, was quickly brought back into this world with a gentle smack to her ass.

"HEY!"

"Gotta use your magic words or I'll do it again!" Alex teased, her hand hovering over Piper's ass.

"Pretty please put me down Alex!"

Alex smirked and lowered Piper gently to the floor. The blonde was mildly annoyed as she straightened out her dress but the annoyance quickly dissipated when she looked up to see Alex standing with her arms crossed sporting her signature Vause smirk.

The blonde lifted her hands to cup Alex's face pulling a little forcefully to meet their lips. It was quite unlike Piper and as she pulled away her cheeks flushed red and she clasped her hands together lowering her head.

"I'm sorry, I can't resist when you do that."

"Do what?" Alex knew exactly what Piper meant.

The blonde looked up. Alex was smirking again. She stayed quiet.

"This?" She raised an eyebrow.

Piper smiled.

"Well I can't resist you when you do that." Alex stepped forward and placed a gentle kiss on Piper's lips.

The world stopped for them both for a moment before Alex's stomach so rudely interrupted the moment with a loud growl.

"Best keep going, looks like someone is hungry!" Piper placed her hands on Alex's hips teasingly running her thumbs across her stomach.

Alex took one of the blondes hands and lead her up the hill to the cinema complex. The pair barely spoke a word for the rest of the walk as they admired the sunset together.

"Mexican." Piper uttered out of the blue.

"Mexican?"

"Yeah, the answer is Mexican, to the question you asked me earlier, chicken, burgers or mexican. I want mexican."

"Mexican it is, kid." Alex raised their interlocked hands to her face and kissed the back of Piper's hand.

The pair reached the restaurant in good time and were seated immediately in a private little booth. Piper ordered a long island iced tea and Alex ordered a bubblegum mocktail and then they began perusing the menu. After a few minutes the pair decided on a sharing platter of lots of different mexican dishes.

Lost in conversation, surrounded by good and excluded from the rest of the world by the walls of their booth, time went by quickly and it wasn't until Piper took out her phone to take a picture of them both in Mexican-style hats that they realised they had probably outstayed their welcome as it was almost closing time.

They took their photo and quickly asked for the bill, not wanting to intrude on the staff any longer. As they left Alex noted the song that played on the radio: Rachel Platten - Stand by you.

As they stepped out of the restaurant door they were welcomed with a downpour and decided to race back to the car to see who could get there the quickest and driest. As a track runner with a leather jacket held over her head, she had an added advantage.

As Alex thought, Piper arrived at the car first and to torture her for her arrogance and bragging, she didn't unlock the car doors until she was right by it.

Piper was practically bone dry as they got inside the car.

"You look a little wet Al." The blonde joked seeing Alex soaked through to the skin.

"How would you know I was wet?" Alex quipped back with a raised eyebrow and her signature smirk.

Piper blushed but decided she could match up to Alex's wit.

"Well when I do this… I can tell." The blonde placed her hand on Alex's wet, covered thigh just above the knee and slid it upwards rucking up the skirt of her dress. As she reached Alex's hip, she slid her finger tips down to Alex's inner thigh which she'd conveniently shifted apart from her other for Piper's easy access.

The blonde looked her in the eyes and raised an eyebrow. Alex leaned forward taking Piper's cheeks into her hands and as the windows steamed up from their warm wet bodies, their kisses got more heated too.

To be continued…

A/N: Thanks for reading and thanks to you all for your endless patience. I love you all so much, but not as much as I love my Vausemania. Hope you enjoyed reading. I'm more than happy to receive suggestions on how the next chapter should go!


	35. Chapter 29

Chapter 29

A/N: Sorry this is a super short chapter guys, hope you enjoy it nevertheless! Thanks as always for being so loyal and patient.

A/N: I realised at some point I have switched from Alex wearing high-waisted jeans to her wearing a dress… I'm not sure how this happened but she is supposed to be wearing a dress so proceed from the last chapter as if it's correct. My most sincere apologies.

As Piper's hand creeped closer to Alex's center, Alex pushed into the kisses harder. As the raven-haired girl reclined the seat of her mother's car, she noticed the gift bag in the back seat footwell containing the gifts she intended to hand to Piper right after their date. As Piper shifted to straddle Alex's hips and leaned in to kiss her, Alex abruptly stopped her.

"Wait, Pipes, I have something for you." The Raven-haired girl reached over and grabbed the gift bag. "This is for you, Pipes, I mean I had a little help from Elizabeth for this one too, as you probably already guessed, but hey everyone needs a wingman right? Or wingwoman? Wingchild?"

"You're rambling. Just shut up and give it to me." Piper new full well that Alex only rambled when she was nervous but that only made the blonde more intrigued for what was hidden below the crinkled pink tissue paper in the not at all complimentary purple metallic gift bag.

Alex tentatively gave over the bag but Piper was in no way tentative with the way she excitedly peeled back the crumpled tissue paper disguising the adorable penguin beneath.

"Alex, it's adorable." The blonde announced as she dislodged the penguin from the gift bag and discarded it to the passenger seat. "And look at its adorable scarf!"

"You can thank Elizabeth for that one, but that's not the best part. Press her tummy."

"It's a she?"

"If you want her to be."

"And what does her tummy do?"

"If you squeeze her really hard she'll throw up and it'll smell like fish."

Piper raised her eyebrow. Alex rested her hands on the blondes hip.

"Why don't you squeeze her and find out babe?"

Piper grinned from ear to ear at Alex's choice of words.

"Okay so squeeze her!" Alex almost felt as if the car was closing in on itself, the tension in the atmosphere growing ever thicker.

Piper located the solid box amidst the stuffing in the little lady's stomach and gave one quick squeeze.

She couldn't quite believe what she heard so she squeezed it a second time.

From the chubby scarf-wearing penguin echoed the words 'Pipes, will you be my girlfriend?'

The blonde blinked a couple of times, mouth slightly agape.

"Pipes?"

Piper lowered the penguin in a very serious manner twisting her body to place it carefully on the passenger seat. She turned again to Alex, who looked very concerned, placed her hands on her ribs below her chest and leaned down.

Alex was about to take a sharp breath in and brace herself for the worst when Piper stole that idea with the most passionate kiss she thought she'd ever received from anyone, let alone just her blonde, possible girlfriend. It ended too quickly for Alex though as Piper pulled away almost as quickly as she'd leaned in.

"Did THE Alex Vause just ask me to be her girlfriend?"

"You mean the sexy, suave, sophisticated Alex Vause?"

"Oh, if it's that Alex then I'll have to politely decline because, you see, I've fallen in love with this other Alex. She's definitely sexy, I wouldn't kick her out of bed for dropping crumbs. She's funny, very witty, extremely intelligent, and she has this super cute soft side that buys me candles and plush penguins and my favourite chocolates."

"Oh THAT Alex, let me see if she's in." Alex joked as she tickled Piper's sides.

"Hey hey hey" Piper called a halt to the fun. "I believe my _girlfriend_ owes me mexican food."

This time it was Alex's turn to grin from ear to ear.

"I could get used to hearing that."

A/N: I know it's super super short but I felt I owed you something. Hope it satisfies for the moment, I promise there will be more ASAP.


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